variants
or sheqel
plural shekels or shekalim
she-ˈkä-lim 
or shekelim
shē-ˈkā-lim
or sheqalim
she-ˈkä-lim
or shekelim
shē-ˈkā-lim
or sheqalim
she-ˈkä-lim
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
Pete Coutros4
the basic monetary unit of Israel see Money Table
Examples of shekel in a Sentence
if I had the shekels, I'd be first in line to buy one of the new vehicles
Recent Examples on the Web
Meanwhile, after mounting criticism over the government’s inaction, authorities approved a 100 million shekel ($29.5 million) plan to renovate existing public shelters and install portable ones — but that only happened seven days into the war.
—Deborah Danan, Sun Sentinel, 26 June 2025
Meanwhile, the shekel strengthened against the dollar and euro Monday through Wednesday, as Israel appeared to be advancing goals in Iran.
—Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor, 18 June 2025
And last week, citing unnamed public officials, Israel’s public broadcaster, Kan, reported that the Israeli government had sent hundreds of millions of shekels to the group.
—Matt Bradley, NBC news, 11 June 2025
One kilo of chicken (2.2 pounds) that was 21 shekels ($5.76) is now 50 shekels ($13.72).
—Julia Frankel, Chicago Tribune, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shekel
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Deborah Danan, Sun Sentinel, 26 June 2025
Meanwhile, the shekel strengthened against the dollar and euro Monday through Wednesday, as Israel appeared to be advancing goals in Iran.
—Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor, 18 June 2025
And last week, citing unnamed public officials, Israel’s public broadcaster, Kan, reported that the Israeli government had sent hundreds of millions of shekels to the group.
—Matt Bradley, NBC news, 11 June 2025
One kilo of chicken (2.2 pounds) that was 21 shekels ($5.76) is now 50 shekels ($13.72).
—Julia Frankel, Chicago Tribune, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shekel
Cite this Entry
“Shekel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shekel. Accessed 6 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shekel
noun
shek·el
ˈshek-əl
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
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