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)

Explanation

If you coin a phrase, that means you come up with a new way to say something, like the person who coined "webizens" to describe people who constantly use the Internet. The verb coin literally refers to making coins, the change you probably have in your pocket. The word can be used in a broader sense — creating something new, usually something related to language. For example, you could coin a phrase or a new word for “joke.” The language authorities would be proud — unlike federal authorities if you tried to coin money. That kind of coining is a criminal offense.

Example Sentences

"I think we will probably see the negative side of this coin before we see the positive side."

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

“There is the striking fact about gold that every ounce of gold that has ever been dug out of the ground and pounded into an earring or a coin still exists,” says H.W.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

For now, the elusive Neukgu has become a "symbol of independence", a "wolf that wouldn't stay caged", according to creators of the meme coin Neukgu.

From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026

The lord high treasurer bent down and handed a gold coin to a toddler doddling around as his family waited to meet the queen.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

“I have coin enough. No, surely you can offer more than that.”

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny