as in cash
something (as pieces of stamped metal or printed paper) customarily and legally used as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment
coins and bills are considered legal tender, but postage stamps are not
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of legal tender
Pennies remain legal tender, but in recent months, businesses have been unable to order new rolls of the coins as production wound down.
—
Addy Bink, The Hill, 30 Dec. 2025
Americans can continue to spend pennies at retailers, which will still accept them as legal tender.
—Alexandra Hardle, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
In early 2022, Nayib Bukele—the president of El Salvador who made Bitcoin legal tender in his country—photoshopped himself wearing a McDonald’s uniform after the cryptocurrency dropped.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2025
Impact on Customers Though the penny will remain legal tender, everyday cash transactions may increasingly resemble McDonald’s policy, with retailers rounding to the nearest nickel when pennies are unavailable.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for legal tender
Addy Bink, The Hill, 30 Dec. 2025
Americans can continue to spend pennies at retailers, which will still accept them as legal tender.
—Alexandra Hardle, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
In early 2022, Nayib Bukele—the president of El Salvador who made Bitcoin legal tender in his country—photoshopped himself wearing a McDonald’s uniform after the cryptocurrency dropped.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 29 Nov. 2025
Impact on Customers Though the penny will remain legal tender, everyday cash transactions may increasingly resemble McDonald’s policy, with retailers rounding to the nearest nickel when pennies are unavailable.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for legal tender
Recent Examples of Synonyms for legal tender
Noun
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Sun Pharma plans to fund the acquisition through a mix of internal cash and financing from banks.—
Baiju Kalesh,
Bloomberg,
27 Apr. 2026
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The irregular flow of cash will distort their financial reports and could deepen mistrust that the county has adequate guardrails to properly account for where taxpayers’ money is ending up.—
A.D. Quig,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Trump has vowed to spend his own money to pay for the ballroom, but the project has drawn criticism for its massive size.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
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Opponents of Johnson’s added into the budget an expectation that the city would earn $6 million from the technology, though Johnson’s administration argued the city could not responsibly count on the money.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Both metals are accessible through physical bars and coins, ETFs, mining stocks or futures contracts.—
Sharon Wu,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2026
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Oliver needed to liquidate $200,000 from his stock and bond portfolio, convert it to cash and use it to buy gold coins.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Trump says administration is weighing a currency swap with UAE to help bolster finances of Mideast ally rattled by war.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Apr. 2026
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If someone asks for payment through Bitcoin, Ethereum or another digital currency, assume the request is suspicious until proven otherwise.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Pepsi faced bogus charges for making volume deals that let families buy soda 12-packs for a few bucks — not at boutique pricing of a dollar per can.—
Stephen Moore,
Boston Herald,
24 Apr. 2026
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These bucks need to wait in line.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
22 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Legal tender.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/legal%20tender. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.
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