non-fungible
Americanadjective
Explanation
In economics, when something is non-fungible, it can't be broken into units and interchanged for something else of the same value. Unlike money, things like antiques, cars, houses, and artwork are non-fungible. Non-fungible is frequently used in the term non-fungible token, or NFT, a kind of cryptocurrency. The difference between these and other digital payments is their uniqueness — they can't be substituted. Money is fungible because you can exchange a $20 bill for four fives. A car, however, is non-fungible: you can't borrow your friend's Honda and return a different Honda of the same value. Fungible is from the Latin fungi vice, "to take the place of."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The video was sold as a non-fungible token, or NFT, for £500,000 in 2021.
From BBC ● Feb. 14, 2025
After cutting a lavish deal to license NFL players’ names, images and likenesses for non-fungible tokens in 2021, DraftKings recognized that the market for NFTs had evaporated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2024
A similarly-named company, CIC Digital LLC, owns the digital trading card NFTs, or non-fungible tokens.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 17, 2024
He announced Tuesday that he’s selling non-fungible tokens for $99 apiece.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 15, 2023
Securities and Exchange Commission charges it illegally raised nearly $30 million by conducting unregistered sales of non-fungible tokens.
From Reuters ● Aug. 28, 2023
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
