cash

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈkash 

1

: ready money

2

: money or its equivalent (such as a check) paid for goods or services at the time of purchase or delivery

cash

2 of 4

adjective

: being a method of accounting that includes as income only what has been received and as expenses only those paid compare accrual

cash

3 of 4

verb

cashed; cashing; cashes

transitive verb

1

: to pay or obtain cash for

cash a check

2

: to lead and win a bridge trick with (a card that is the highest remaining card of its suit)

cashable

ˈka-shə-bəl 

adjective

cash

4 of 4

noun (2)

plural cash

1

: any of various coins of small value in China and southern India

especially : a Chinese coin with a square hole in the center

2

: a unit of value equivalent to one cash

Illustration of cash

• ⁴cash 1

Synonyms of cash

Noun (1)

• money
• coin
• currency

Examples of cash in a Sentence

Noun (1)

went to the ATM to get more cash

Verb

The store wouldn't cash the check.

He cashed his paycheck at the bank.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Winner may not substitute, assign or transfer Prize or redeem Prize for cash, but Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to substitute Prize (or portion thereof) with one of comparable or greater value. —AJC.com, 7 May 2026

Safilo Group showed resilience in the first quarter in North America and Europe, improving margins and cash generation in the period despite being impacted by currency headwinds. —Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 7 May 2026

Adjective

Carbios reported a financial loss of about $12 million, reflecting lower income from cash investments, interest flows with subsidiaries, interest paid on loans and a non-cash impairment provision. —Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 17 Apr. 2026

Inflated charitable deduction schemes Some tax schemes encourage taxpayers to claim inflated deductions for non-cash donations, such as artwork, property or conservation easements. —Roxanne Downer, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026

Verb

There have been 72 police reports filed in the past three months alone, complaining that mailed checks have been stolen and washed by criminals who are cashing them for tens of thousands of dollars. —J.d. Miles, CBS News, 8 May 2026

But neither his five months in the job nor his desire to staff up have kept Anderson, who’s been a county supervisor since 2020, from attacking him over the long wait times for cashing checks. —Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

modification of Middle French or Old Italian; Middle French casse money box, from Old Italian cassa, from Latin capsa chest — more at case

Noun (2)

Portuguese caixa, from Tamil kācu, a small copper coin, from Sanskrit karṣa, a weight of gold or silver

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1596, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1913, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1811, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing cash

• actual cash value
• cash-and-carry
• cash bar
• cash card
• cash cow
• cash crop
• cash desk
• cash discount
• cash dispenser
• cash flow
• cash grab
• cash in
• cash in on
• cash machine
• cash out
• cash register
• cash-strapped
• cold cash
• hard cash
• petty cash

Rhymes for cash

• ash
• bash
• brash
• cache
• clash
• crash
• dash
• flash
• gash
• hash
• lash
• mash

Kids Definition

cash

1 of 2 noun

ˈkash 

1

: money in the form of coins or bills

2

: money or its equivalent (as a check) paid for goods at the time of purchase or delivery

cash

2 of 2 verb

: to pay or obtain cash for

cash a check

Etymology

Noun

from early French casse or early Italian cassa, both meaning "money box," from Latin capsa "chest, box" — related to case entry 2

Legal Definition

cash

noun

1

: ready money

2

: money or its equivalent (as a check) paid for goods or services at the time of purchase or delivery