franc

noun

\ˈfraŋk

Definition of franc

1 : any of various former basic monetary units (as in Belgium, France, and Luxembourg)

2 the basic monetary unit of Switzerland and a number of especially sub-Saharan nations in Africa — see Money Table

Examples of franc in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The figure of Cormery’s domineering grandmother, taking a rawhide switch to the troublemaking boy or up to her elbow in a toilet recovering a two-franc piece, is a synecdoche for the country’s intransigence and desperation. — Sam Sacks, WSJ, "Book Review: Classics Illustrated," 16 Nov. 2018 Typical market barometers of political risk like the Swiss franc and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Aerospace & Defense Index have risen in the past month. — Georgi Kantchev, WSJ, "The Return of the Political-Risk Trade," 11 June 2018 FX Havens News that China would hit back with tariffs on roughly $3 billion of American goods initially sparked a rally in classic haven currencies such as the Japanese yen and Swiss franc. — Brian Chappatta, Bloomberg.com, "Currency and Credit Markets Take Trade Tensions Mostly in Stride," 23 Mar. 2018 Back then, cheap foreign loans, including Swiss-franc mortgages taken out by individual households, had boosted consumption but quickly became hard to pay off. — The Economist, "Central Europe’s Goldilocks economies," 5 July 2018 The company’s shares rose 4% to 75.28 Swiss francs ($75.91) on Friday. — Brian Blackstone, WSJ, "Novartis to Spin Off Alcon Eye-Care Business," 29 June 2018 Switzerland’s biggest insurer raised its dividend for 2017 by 6 percent to 18 Swiss francs ($19.10) a share, after signaling higher investor payouts in November. — Patrick Winters, Bloomberg.com, "Zurich Delivers on Dividend Pledge as Insurer Slashes Costs," 8 Feb. 2018 Dfinity says total value of the air drop is 35 million Swiss francs (a Swiss franc is about equal to one U.S. dollar) but that none of the tokens will go to U.S. residents due to regulatory concerns. — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, "Exclusive: Dfinity Annouces $35M 'Air Drop' for Blockchain-Based Cloud," 29 May 2018 Only two, the Swiss franc and the Swedish krona, now look overvalued against it. — The Economist, "Investors are gorging on American assets," 12 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'franc.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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29 Nov 2018

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The first known use of franc was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for franc

franc

noun

English Language Learners Definition of franc

: a basic unit of money that is used in some countries where French is spoken and that was formerly used in France, Luxembourg, and Belgium; also : a coin or bill representing one franc

See the full definition for franc in the English Language Learners Dictionary

franc

noun

\ˈfraŋk