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

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

Founded in 2011, PLD Space has raised more than 160 million euros ($188 million) to date, but the company is highly leveraged, with half of its cash coming in the form of loans. —ArsTechnica, 9 July 2025

Gone are Gascón’s reformist policies discouraging the use of cash bail and limiting the use of sentencing enhancements. —Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2025

Adjective

According to the Internal Revenue Service, all tips, both cash and non-cash, greater than $20 per month must be reported as income and are subject to Federal, Social Security and Medicare taxes. —Chad Murphy, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025

All cash and non-cash tips received by an employee are considered income and are therefore currently subject to federal income tax, as well as Social Security and Medicare taxes. —Tom Rogers, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2025

Verb

These tickets must be cashed at a Florida Lottery office. —David J. Neal july 9, Miami Herald, 9 July 2025

Citizens Bank was also allowing non-customers to cash their City Hall paychecks at their branches on Thursday, Groffenberger and Lawrence wrote in a memo that was sent around 2:30 p.m., with most banks set to close shortly thereafter. —Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald, 4 July 2025

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)

1593, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1622, 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