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definitions

scrip

1
[skrip]
|

noun

a receipt, certificate, list, or similar brief piece of writing.
a scrap of paper.
Finance.
  1. a certificate representing a fraction of a share of stock.
  2. a certificate to be exchanged for goods, as at a company store.
  3. a certificate indicating the right of the holder to receive payment later in the form of cash, goods, or land.
paper currency in denominations of less than one dollar, formerly issued in the United States.

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Origin of scrip

1
1610–20; earliest sense “scrap of paper” perhaps gradational variant of scrap1; subsequent sense development shows influence of script and subscription, with def. 3a specifically a shortening of subscription receipt
Related formsscrip·less, adjective
Can be confusedscrip script

scrip

2
[skrip]

noun Archaic.

a bag or wallet carried by wayfarers.

Origin of scrip

2
1250–1300; Middle English scrippe < Medieval Latin scrippum pilgrim's pack < ?

scrip

3
[skrip]

noun Informal.

a prescription, as for a drug.

Origin of scrip

3
First recorded in 1965–70; shortening of prescription
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for scrip

British Dictionary definitions for scrip

scrip

1

noun

a written certificate, list, etc
a small scrap, esp of paper with writing on it
finance
  1. a certificate representing a claim to part of a share of stock
  2. the shares allocated in a bonus issue

Word Origin for scrip

C18: in some senses, probably from script; otherwise, short for subscription receipt

scrip

2

noun

archaic a small bag or wallet, as carried by pilgrims

Word Origin for scrip

C14: from Old French escreppe, variant of escarpe scarf 1

scrip

3

script

noun

informal a medical prescription

Word Origin for scrip

C20: short for prescription
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for scrip
n.

"certificate of a right to receive something" (especially a stock share), 1762, probably shortened from (sub)scrip(tion) receipt. Originally "receipt for a portion of a loan subscribed," meaning "certificate issued as currency" first recorded 1790.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper