coin

¹ American  

[koin] / kɔɪn /

noun

1. a piece of metal stamped and issued by the authority of a government for use as money.

2. a number of such pieces.

3. Informal. money; cash.

   He's got plenty of coin in the bank.

4. Architecture. quoin.

5. Archaic. a corner cupboard of the 18th century.

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adjective

1. operated by, or containing machines operated by, inserting a coin or coins into a slot.

   a coin laundry.

verb (used with object)

1. to make (coinage) by stamping metal.

   The mint is coining pennies.

2. to convert (metal) into coinage.

   The mint used to coin gold into dollars.

3. to make; invent; fabricate.

   to coin an expression.

4. Metalworking. to shape the surface of (metal) by squeezing between two dies.

verb (used without object)

1. British Informal. to counterfeit, especially to make counterfeit money.

idioms

1. the other side of the coin, the other side, aspect, or point of view; alternative consideration.

2. pay someone back in his / her own coin, to reciprocate or behave toward in a like way, especially inamicably; retaliate.

   If they persist in teasing you, pay them back in their own coin.

3. coin money, to make or gain money rapidly.

   Those who own stock in that restaurant chain are coining money.

COIN ² American  

[koin] / kɔɪn /

noun

1. counterinsurgency.

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coin British  

/ kɔɪn /

noun

1. a metal disc or piece used as money

2. metal currency, as opposed to securities, paper currency, etc

3. architect a variant spelling of quoin

4. to treat a person in the way that he has treated others

5. the opposite view of a matter

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verb

1. (tr) to make or stamp (coins)

2. (tr) to make into a coin

3. (tr) to fabricate or invent (words, etc)

4. informal (tr) to make (money) rapidly (esp in the phrase coin it in )

5. said ironically after one uses a cliché

coin More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing coin

• other side of the coin
• pay back (in someone's own coin)

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Other Word Forms

• coinable adjective
• coiner noun
• miscoin verb
• recoin verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of coin¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English coyn(e), coygne, from Anglo-French; Middle French coin, cuigne “wedge, corner, die,” from Latin cuneus “wedge”

Origin of COIN²

co(unter) in(surgency)

Example Sentences

I wrote about the gold coin a few months back, pointing out there’s a special meaning when leaders put themselves on money.

From Salon • Mar. 29, 2026

The coin does not have a monetary value and its sale price has not been disclosed, but similar commemorative coins sold by the US Mint can cost more than $1,000.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

The coin is supposed to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

From Barron's • Mar. 20, 2026

Until now, Calvin Coolidge is the only other US president to have featured on a coin in his lifetime.

From BBC • Mar. 19, 2026

The coin made its way to two retired teachers and then to the paperboy, Jimmy Bozart.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin