shekel

noun

shek·​el ˈshe-kəl How to pronounce shekel (audio)
variants or sheqel
plural shekels or shekalim she-ˈkä-lim How to pronounce shekel (audio) or shekelim shē-ˈkā-lim How to pronounce shekel (audio) or sheqalim she-ˈkä-lim How to pronounce shekel (audio)
1
a
: any of various ancient units of weight
especially : a Hebrew unit equal to about 252 grains troy
b
: a unit of value based on a shekel weight of gold or silver
2
: a coin weighing one shekel
3
shekels plural, informal : money
… making boxing history in the ring in New York, Chicago and wherever else fans … were willing to unburden themselves of substantial sums of shekels for the pleasure of seeing two guys vent their nastiness on each other.Pete Coutros
4
the basic monetary unit of Israel see Money Table

Examples of shekel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Israeli shekel weakened slightly after the data release to trade at around 3.62 to the US dollar. Hanna Ziady, CNN, 19 Feb. 2024 Foreign investments were pulled; the shekel depreciated. Ruth Margalit, New York Times, 27 Sep. 2023 In currency markets, the shekel weakened Monday, trading down 0.3% at 3.988 per US dollar. Laura He, CNN, 16 Oct. 2023 When that idea doesn’t pan out, Plan B kicks in: Take a page from the playbook of the Messiah himself and start performing a few magic tricks around town, conning the crowd for shekels, with Elijah as his shill. Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2024 In 2022 before the war, a 110 lb bag of flour sold for 120 shekels ($35) in Gaza. Anna Gordon, Time, 13 Dec. 2023 The Israeli central bank has helped to stabilize financial markets and prop up the currency, the shekel, by selling foreign reserves. Chelsey Dulaney, WSJ, 28 Nov. 2023 The shekel was the biggest loser among the world’s major currencies on Tuesday, losing as much as 2% against the dollar to trade at its weakest in close to three years. Marissa Newman, Bloomberg.com, 20 Feb. 2023 The Israel-Hamas war, which began in early October, initially rattled global financial markets, sending stocks tumbling, the Israeli shekel sliding and oil prices climbing. Krystal Hur, CNN, 24 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shekel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Hebrew sheqel

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of shekel was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near shekel

Cite this Entry

“Shekel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shekel. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

shekel

noun
shek·​el ˈshek-əl How to pronounce shekel (audio)
1
: an ancient unit of weight or value
especially : a Hebrew unit equal to about 252 grains troy (about 16.3 grams)
2
: a coin weighing one shekel
3
: the basic unit of money of Israel

More from Merriam-Webster on shekel

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