rial

1 of 2

noun (1)

ri·​al rē-ˈȯl 

-ˈäl

variants or less commonly riyal

: the basic monetary unit of Iran, Oman, and Yemen see Money Table

rial

2 of 2

noun (2)

ri·​al

less common spelling of riyal

: the basic monetary unit of Qatar and Saudi Arabia see Money Table

Examples of rial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The currency, the rial, is in free fall. —David Remnick, New Yorker, 11 Jan. 2026

The first marches took place in downtown Tehran, with participants demonstrating against rising inflation and the falling value of the national currency, the rial. —Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 11 Jan. 2026

The protests began late last month with shopkeepers and bazaar merchants demonstrating against accelerating inflation and the collapse of the rial, which lost about half its value against the dollar last year. —Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 10 Jan. 2026

The unrest began a few weeks ago, with merchants and shopkeepers protesting the sharply falling value of the local currency, the rial. —Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Persian, from Arabic riyāl riyal

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1930, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for rial

• dial
• thiol
• trial
• vial
• denial
• mistrial
• posttrial
• pretrial
• retrial
• sensorial
• supervisorial