token

American  

[toh-kuhn] / ˈtoʊ kən /

noun

1. something serving to represent or indicate some fact, event, feeling, etc.; sign.

   Black is a token of mourning.

2. a characteristic indication or mark of something; evidence or proof.

   Malnutrition is a token of poverty.

3. a memento; souvenir; keepsake.

   The seashell was a token of their trip.

4. something used to indicate authenticity, authority, etc.; emblem; badge.

   Judicial robes are a token of office.

5. Also called token coin.  a stamped piece of metal, issued as a limited medium of exchange, as for bus fares, at a nominal value much greater than its commodity value.

6. anything of only nominal value used in exchange for goods or services, as paper currency.

7. virtual token.

8. an item, idea, etc., representing a group; a part as representing the whole; sample; indication.

   The religious movement was an exhibition of latent energy, and a token of what may take place at some future day.

9. a person, especially a member of a minority group, who has been hired, admitted, enrolled, etc., to forestall charges of prejudice or discrimination.

10. an object, as a disk or figure, used in various board games for marking a player's position or for keeping score.

11. Logic, Linguistics. a particular instance of a word, symbol, expression, sentence, or the like.

    A printed page might have twenty tokens of the single type-word “and.”

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verb (used with object)

1. to be a token of; signify; symbolize.

adjective

1. serving as a token.

   At the end of the field trip each child received a token gift to take home as a memento.

   The HR complaint was filed by a man who felt his hiring had been meant to add a token male to an all-female staff.

   Synonyms:

   symbolic

2. slight; nominal; minimal.

   token resistance;

   a token amount.

idioms

1. by the same token,

   1. moreover; furthermore.

      She has a talent as a painter, and by the same token has a sharp eye for detail.

   2. in proof of which.

      The study examined the possible effects of stress on health and, by the same token, IQ and test scores.

2. in token of, as a sign of; in evidence of.

   a ring in token of his love.

token British  

/ ˈtəʊkən /

noun

1. an indication, warning, or sign of something

2. a symbol or visible representation of something

3. something that indicates authority, proof, or authenticity

4. a metal or plastic disc, such as a substitute for currency for use in slot machines

5. a memento

6. a gift voucher that can be used as payment for goods of a specified value

7. (modifier) as a matter of form only; nominal

   a token increase in salary

8. linguistics a symbol regarded as an individual concrete mark, not as a class of identical symbols Compare type

9. philosophy an individual instance: if the same sentence has different truth-values on different occasions of utterance the truth-value may be said to attach to the sentence-token Compare type

10. moreover and for the same or a similar reason

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verb

1. (tr) to act or serve as a warning or symbol of; betoken

token More Idioms  

1. see by the same token; in token of.

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Other Word Forms

• pretoken noun

Etymology

Origin of token

First recorded before 900; Middle English token(e), tokin(e), Old English tāc(e)n, tācon; cognate with German Zeichen, Old Norse teikn, tākn “sign, mark”; see teach

Explanation

When you give someone a flower or a friendship bracelet or something symbolic of the way you feel about them, you're giving them a token of your affection. A token is not only something sentimental (like a keepsake) or symbolic (like your friendship bracelet). You, yourself, can also be a token: If you're the only female in your office, for instance, and you were hired just so there'd be at least one woman, then you're the "token female." Tokens can also be a kind of special currency, like the coins you use in slot machines. Before the Metro Card, New York City subway riders paid their fares with tokens.

Example Sentences

The SEC also released a token taxonomy in March clarifying that it didn’t believe most crypto transactions fell under its jurisdiction.

From Barron's • Apr. 17, 2026

SEC “innovation exemptions” and a token taxonomy clarification offer future optimism for crypto, despite past headwinds.

From Barron's • Apr. 17, 2026

Rangan and others argued that pure token use is the wrong metric to optimize for.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Leaderboards that rank individual employees’ AI token usage have garnered recent criticism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

“Small token of respect for a good man. It’s the least I can do for an old friend.”

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Related Words

• badge
• expression
• manifestation
• memento
• proof
• souvenir
• symbol