as in cash
something (as pieces of stamped metal or printed paper) customarily and legally used as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment
coins and bills are considered legal tender, but postage stamps are not
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of legal tender
Pennies remain legal tender, but in recent months, businesses have been unable to order new rolls of the coins as production wound down.
—
Addy Bink, The Hill, 30 Dec. 2025
Americans can continue to spend pennies at retailers, which will still accept them as legal tender.
—Alexandra Hardle, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
In early 2022, Nayib Bukele—the president of El Salvador who made Bitcoin legal tender in his country—photoshopped himself wearing a McDonald’s uniform after the cryptocurrency dropped.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2025
Impact on Customers Though the penny will remain legal tender, everyday cash transactions may increasingly resemble McDonald’s policy, with retailers rounding to the nearest nickel when pennies are unavailable.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for legal tender
Addy Bink, The Hill, 30 Dec. 2025
Americans can continue to spend pennies at retailers, which will still accept them as legal tender.
—Alexandra Hardle, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
In early 2022, Nayib Bukele—the president of El Salvador who made Bitcoin legal tender in his country—photoshopped himself wearing a McDonald’s uniform after the cryptocurrency dropped.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2025
Impact on Customers Though the penny will remain legal tender, everyday cash transactions may increasingly resemble McDonald’s policy, with retailers rounding to the nearest nickel when pennies are unavailable.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for legal tender
Recent Examples of Synonyms for legal tender
Noun
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During the pandemic, the Fed launched massive bond-buying programs, cut rates to zero, and promised to keep them there, flooding the economy with cash and stoking inflation.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
3 May 2026
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The airline ran out of cash, failed to secure a $500 million federal bailout, and felt the pressure of surging fuel prices.—
Marissa Sulek,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
Noun
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Trump has vowed to spend his own money to pay for the ballroom, but the project has drawn criticism for its massive size.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
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Opponents of Johnson’s added into the budget an expectation that the city would earn $6 million from the technology, though Johnson’s administration argued the city could not responsibly count on the money.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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In these kinds of experiments, participants are told to practice physical activities—finger tapping, coin tossing, dart throwing with a nondominant hand—within their dreams.—
Shayla Love,
New Yorker,
1 May 2026
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The coins were initially discovered by two metal detectorists in a field near the Norwegian city of Rena in the region of Østerdalen, according to the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage.—
Claire Cameron,
Scientific American,
1 May 2026
Noun
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Those who join now can use the code PCAMER26 by December 31, 2026, to earn up to 4,000 bonus Avios (Qatar Airways’s rewards currency) to use on upcoming flights, upgrades, and extra baggage allowances.—
Jamie Spain,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Apr. 2026
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The courts in the past have held — and usually not framed in terms of DEI policies; this was prior to that term gaining currency — but courts have been skeptical about giving the FCC authority over Equal Employment Opportunity policies as a basis for license decisions.—
Josef Adalian,
Vulture,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Thirty-six thousand fans on a school day, with San Diego gas at six bucks a gallon.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
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This small-space-friendly set costs under $100, but feels like a million bucks.—
Shea Simmons,
Southern Living,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Legal tender.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/legal%20tender. Accessed 4 May. 2026.
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