piaster
or pi·as·tre
[ pee-as-ter, -ah-ster ]
/ piˈæs tər, -ˈɑ stər /
Save This Word!
noun
a former coin of Turkey, one 100th of a lira: replaced by the kurus in 1933.
a monetary unit of Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, and Syria, one 100th of a pound.
a former monetary unit of South Vietnam: replaced by the dong in 1976.
the former peso or dollar of Spain and Spanish America.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON PARENTHESES AND BRACKETS APLENTY!
Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!
Question 1 of 7
Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT 
Meet Grammar Coach
Improve Your Writing
Origin of piaster
First recorded in 1605–15; from French piastre, from Italian piastra “thin sheet of metal, silver coin” (short for piastra d'argento, literally, “plate of silver”), akin to piastro plaster
Words nearby piaster
piano tuner, piano wire, Piarist, pias., piassava, piaster, piastre, Piat, Piatigorsky, Piatra Neamt, Piauí
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021