tael

American  

[teyl] / teɪl /

noun

1. liang.

2. any of various similar units of weight in East Asia.

3. a former Chinese money of account, being the value of this weight of standard silver.

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tael British  

/ teɪl /

noun

1. a unit of weight, used in the Far East, having various values between one to two and a half ounces

2. (formerly) a Chinese monetary unit equivalent in value to a tael weight of standard silver

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Etymology

Origin of tael

First recorded in 1580–90; from Portuguese from Malay tahil “liang”

Example Sentences

Before the present Prefect took office the cash were more debased still, no less than 4000 being then counted as one tael, but the Prefect caused all these cash to be withdrawn from circulation.

From An Australian in China Being the Narrative of a Quiet Journey Across China to Burma by Morrison, George Ernest

Everyone knows that theoretically there are 2000 cash in the tael, each tael containing 20 "strings," and each "string" 100 cash, but in Yunnan 2000 cash are not 2000 cash—they are only 1880 cash.

From An Australian in China Being the Narrative of a Quiet Journey Across China to Burma by Morrison, George Ernest

The kinds of gold that are found among the natives of the city and vicinity of Manila are: Bizlin, which is worth two pesos a tael.

From The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803 — Volume 03 of 55 1569-1576 Explorations by Early Navigators, Descriptions of the Islands and Their Peoples, Their History and Records of the Catholic Missions, as Related in Contemporaneous Books and Manuscripts, Showing the Political, Economic, Commercial and Religious Conditions of Those Islands from Their Earliest Relations with European Nations to the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century by Blair, Emma Helen

She had only got at Priaman 312 bahars of pepper, and twenty tael of gold.

From A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 08 by Kerr, Robert

Each province or group of provinces has its own standard tael, differing greatly in value from the tael which may be the basis of value in the next province or group.

From Drugging a Nation The Story of China and the Opium Curse by Merwin, Samuel