SHEKEL

shekel

(noun) the basic unit of money in Israel

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

shekel (plural shekels or shekalim)

A currency unit of both ancient and modern Israel.

(slang, often, antisemitic) Money, especially that purportedly owned or distributed as bribes by Jewish elites.

(historical) An ancient unit of weight equivalent to one-fiftieth of a mina.

Source: Wiktionary


Shek"el, n. Etym: [Heb. shegel, fr. shagal to weigh.]

1. An ancient weight and coin used by the Jews and by other nations of the same stock.

Note: A common estimate makes the shekel equal in weight to about 130 grains for gold, 224 grains for silver, and 450 grains for copper, and the approximate values of the coins are (gold) $5.00, (silver) 60 cents, and (copper half shekel), one and one half cents.

2. pl.

Definition: A jocose term for money.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

23 February 2025

BARGAIN

(noun) an advantageous purchase; “she got a bargain at the auction”; “the stock was a real buy at that price”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

The world’s most expensive coffee costs more than US$700 per kilogram. Asian palm civet – a cat-like creature in Indonesia, eats fruits, including select coffee cherries. It excretes partially digested seeds that produce a smooth, less acidic brew of coffee called kopi luwak.

coffee icon