coin

1 of 3

noun

ˈkȯin 

1

archaic

a

: corner, cornerstone, quoin

b

: wedge

2

a

: a usually flat piece of metal issued by governmental authority as money

b

: metal money

c

: something resembling a coin especially in shape

d

: a unit of a cryptocurrency

I also caution market participants against promoting or touting the offer and sale of coins without first determining whether the securities laws apply to those actions.

—Jay Clayton

3

: something used as if it were money (as in verbal or intellectual exchange)

perhaps wisecracks … are respectable literary coin in the U.S.

—The Times Literary Supplement (London)

would repay him with the full coin of his mind

—Ian Fleming

4

: something having two different and usually opposing sides

—usually used in the phrase the other side of the coin

5

informal : money

I'm in it for the coin

—Sinclair Lewis

coin

2 of 3

verb

coined; coining; coins

transitive verb

1

a

: to make (a coin) especially by stamping : mint

b

: to convert (metal) into coins

2

: create, invent

coin a phrase

coiner

ˈkȯi-nər 

noun

coin

3 of 3

adjective

1

: of or relating to coins

2

: operated by coins

Phrases

coin money

: to get rich quickly

Synonyms

Noun

• bread [slang]
• bucks
• cabbage [slang]
• cash
• change
• chips
• currency
• dough
• gold
• green
• jack [slang]
• kale [slang]
• legal tender
• lolly [British]
• long green [slang]
• loot
• lucre
• money
• moola [slang]
• moolah
• needful
• pelf
• scratch [slang]
• shekels
• sheqels
• shekelim
• shekalim
• sheqalim
• tender
• wampum

Examples of coin in a Sentence

Noun

I have a dollar in coins.

seeking a job that pays plenty of coin

Verb

The coach coined the phrase “refuse to lose.”

William Shakespeare is believed to have coined many words.

The nation plans to coin more money.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Survivor: Thailand The fake merge and brutal last challenge — where the final three had to hold coins between their fingers in a crazy painful pose — keep this dud out of the bottom spot. —Dalton Ross, EW.com, 12 Dec. 2024

But, alas, because these are the 2024 Bears and every setback seemingly has to come with a deep stab and a twist of the knife, Williams and his teammates won the overtime coin toss and had the ball with a chance to end the game but ultimately left Soldier Field with a jaw-dropping 30-27 loss. —Chicago Tribune, 10 Dec. 2024

Verb

An architectural model of the Zara Hadid–designed 2012 Aquatics Center in London and one of the earliest surviving examples of a two-piece swimsuit, first coined a bikini in 1946, will also be on show. —George Nelson For Artnews, Robb Report, 12 Dec. 2024

Galileo Galilei coined the term in 1616, who lived in Italy, where the phenomenon is almost always glimpsed in the northern sky, so it could be mistaken for dawn. —Jamie Carter, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024

Adjective

The victim told him where to find a bedroom safe and coin jar, which together contained $230. —Kim Chatelain, NOLA.com, 21 June 2017

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French coing wedge, corner, from Latin cuneus wedge

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

circa 1566, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing coin

• coin money
• coin of the realm
• coin-op
• fleur de coin
• initial coin offering
• sandwich coin
• the other/opposite/flip side of the coin
• toss/flip a coin
• two sides of the same coin

Kids Definition

coin

1 of 3 noun

ˈkȯin 

1

: a piece of metal put out by a government authority as money

2

: metal money

three dollars in coin

coin

2 of 3 verb

1

a

: to make (a coin) especially by stamping : mint

b

: to convert (metal) into coins

2

: create, invent

coin a phrase

coiner noun

coin

3 of 3 adjective

1

: of or relating to coins

a coin show

2

: operated by coins

a laundromat's coin washers