greenback
noun
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Definition of greenback
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Examples of greenback in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
A year earlier in 1983, the Hong Kong dollar had been pegged to the greenback. — Fortune, "Hong Kong Stocks Are Having Their Worst Streak Since 1984," 6 Aug. 2019 Because most holders of China’s currency remain fixated on its value relative to the greenback, China’s authorities cannot afford to take their eyes off this benchmark either. — The Economist, "Why a weakening yuan is rattling markets," 5 Aug. 2019 That’s because a strong greenback means less income when multinationals bring overseas sales back to the U.S. but cheaper imports for Americans. — Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, "Could a second straight quarter of falling earnings signal a possible recession?," 22 July 2019 On the black market zollars traded at various fractions of a greenback. — The Economist, "Zimbabwe faces its worst economic crisis in a decade," 15 Aug. 2019 The ICE US dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of foreign currencies, rose 0.4%. — Laura He, CNN, "Asian markets mostly fall after Fed declines to signal more rate cuts," 1 Aug. 2019 Investors have opted for the safety of the greenback over higher-returning investments. — Matt Phillips, New York Times, "The Trade War With China Has an Upside for Consumers, Too," 17 June 2019 The greenback is up less than 1% this year against a basket of currencies. — Matt Egan, CNN, "How Trump could kick off a currency war," 15 July 2019 That led to the adoption of the greenback and other more stable currencies. — Chris Muronzi, Quartz Africa, "The Zimbabwean dollar makes a return a decade later but uncertainty reigns," 26 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'greenback.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for greenback
greenback
nounFinancial Definition of greenback
What It Is
Greenback is a slang term for the U.S. dollar. This name is derived from the green color of U.S. paper currency.
How It Works
Since U.S. currency notes were first introduced in the early 1800s, their color has customarily been green. For several decades until the end of the American Civil War, the U.S. federal government was unable to fully back currency notes, and most banking authorities were unwilling to fully honor their face value. As a result, the term "greenback" began as a derogatory term that over time, evolved into common slang. Once dollar bill denominations were centrally issued and universally acceptable as a form of payment, other vernacular terms including "buck" were introduced into common language.
Why It Matters
The term greenback is not used as frequently as it once was – particularly where the color of American currency has changed in recent years. Although the connotation of the term is no longer derogatory as it once was, it is important to recognize the historical origins for the term "greenback."
Source: Investing Answers
greenback
noun
English Language Learners Definition of greenback
See the full definition for greenback in the English Language Learners Dictionary