libra

li·bra | \ for senses 1 & 2a ˈlē-brə

How to pronounce libra (audio)

, sometimes ˈlī-brə, for sense 2b ˈlē-brə or ˈlēv-rə

How to pronounce libra (audio)

\

Definition of libra

1 capitalized

a : a southern zodiacal constellation between Virgo and Scorpio represented by a pair of scales

b(1) : the seventh sign of the zodiac in astrology — see Signs of the Zodiac Table

(2) : one born under the sign of Libra

2a plural librae\ ˈlī-ˌbrē

How to pronounce librae (audio)

, ˈlē-ˌbrī \ [L] : an ancient Roman unit of weight equal to 327.45 grams

b [Spanish & Portuguese, from Latin] : any of various Spanish, Portuguese, Colombian, or Venezuelan units of weight

Examples of libra in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Bitcoin prices soared to almost $14,000 in the summer, amid excitement over Facebook Inc.’s plans to launch its own libra cryptocurrency. — Steven Russolillo, WSJ, "Bitcoin Has Biggest New-Year Rally Since 2012," 15 Jan. 2020 Me: 22, transmasc femme NB libra with a penchant for aggressive femmes and routine strap-on rodeos. — Anying Guo, Washington Post, "This Instagram account became wildly popular for its queer personal ads — and now it’s a dating app," 27 Dec. 2019 If the project lives up to the mock-ups, buying, selling, holding, sending and receiving libras will be a doddle. — The Economist, "Facebook wants to create a digital currency," 18 June 2019 If libra successfully gets off the ground and in wide use (there are a lot of ifs here), people could presumably use it to shop right on Instagram, or make purchases from ads. — Emily Stewart, Vox, "Instagram is going to show you even more ads," 26 June 2019 As with other cryptocurrencies, people will be able to buy and sell libras on exchanges for traditional currencies. — Washington Post, "AP Explains: Behind Libra, Facebook’s new digital currency," 18 June 2019 As with other cryptocurrencies, people will be able to buy and sell libras on exchanges for traditional currencies. — Anick Jesdanun, chicagotribune.com, "Facebook is creating a new digital currency, Libra. Here’s what that means.," 18 June 2019 But not right away. Born a Libra like his father, Els’s son was slow to crawl, slow to walk, and slow to talk. — Karen Crouse, New York Times, "Ernie Els’s Inner Voice Was Quieted When His Son Was Slow to Speak," 13 June 2016 Libra: Your gift to make anything beautiful will go beyond this week, so wave your magic wand! — Cosmopolitan, "Your Weekly Horoscope By Astrologist Kiki T," 6 Aug. 2013

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about libra

Dictionary Entries near libra

Statistics for libra

Last Updated

19 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Libra.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/libra. Accessed 22 Feb. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

pontificate

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

More Confusing Words—Quiz

The magician ______ moved the selected card to the top of the deck.

discreetly discretely

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.