as in money
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
made some real wampum on that last business deal
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wampum
Similar stories played out with other forms of money, such as wampum beads.
—
Dave Birnbaum, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024
Elizabeth James-Perry and Erin Genia: Wampanoag and Dakota Adornment
James-Perry, honored this year with a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts, makes wampum jewelry, textiles, and maritime art directly tied to her Aquinnah Wampanoag tribal heritage.
—Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, 25 July 2023
Some of their gear—a pair of shoes, a VHF radio, a wampum sash worth several thousand dollars—now resides on the canal’s bottom.
—Ben McGrath, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023
There is a really quite amazing scene when Civility and Satcheechoe take a string of wampum and wrap it around the Pennsylvania governor’s arm to symbolically pull him to Albany to meet with all the Native people who have become involved in this case.
—Karin Wulf, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Apr. 2021
See All Example Sentences for wampum
Dave Birnbaum, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024
Elizabeth James-Perry and Erin Genia: Wampanoag and Dakota Adornment
James-Perry, honored this year with a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts, makes wampum jewelry, textiles, and maritime art directly tied to her Aquinnah Wampanoag tribal heritage.
—Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, 25 July 2023
Some of their gear—a pair of shoes, a VHF radio, a wampum sash worth several thousand dollars—now resides on the canal’s bottom.
—Ben McGrath, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023
There is a really quite amazing scene when Civility and Satcheechoe take a string of wampum and wrap it around the Pennsylvania governor’s arm to symbolically pull him to Albany to meet with all the Native people who have become involved in this case.
—Karin Wulf, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Apr. 2021
See All Example Sentences for wampum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wampum
Noun
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In addition to hiring ambassadors, money will also go toward adding staffers in the security operations center, which collects feeds from more than 2,000 cameras, and security guards who are typically law enforcement.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
7 Apr. 2026
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Flipcause, based in California, was used by thousands of nonprofits nationwide to process online donations, allowing money to be collected on the platform before being transferred to individual organizations.—
Kelly Werthmann,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Dave Walton, a corn, soybean, and hay farmer in Iowa and vice president of the American Soybean Association, said in March that some of his neighbors didn’t have cash on hand last fall to buy fertilizer and were struggling to budget for fertilizer due to high prices.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 Apr. 2026
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Building the Xcel Center and investing in a professional hockey team brought in some cash to one corner of the city but did nothing to restore the lost social and human capitals.—
Stephen B. Young,
Twin Cities,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
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During a search of Muñoz's desk, investigators found rare antique coins with a receipt in the name of another dead man that Muñoz investigated in 2022, according to prosecutors.—
Julie Sharp,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
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Maybe it would be obsessed with 18th-century coin production.—
Amanda Gefter,
Quanta Magazine,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
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This occurred after tens of thousands of Iranians protested at the end of last year after their currency crashed.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Apr. 2026
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To be sure, cracks in the petrodollar’s foundation is still far from the currency becoming irrelevant.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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However, the only highly visible campaign is that of billionaire Steyer, who’s not only hopping around the state for personal appearances but shelling out millions of his own bucks for television and internet ads.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
8 Apr. 2026
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The current rules allow hunters to take two bucks a year, depending on the circumstances.—
Paula Wethington,
CBS News,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Its centerpiece will be an auditorium with an immense gold statue of himself.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
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Spring is a lovely time to amble around downtown or see the cherry blossoms on the University of Washington campus, while fall adorns the Emerald City with red and gold hues.—
Scott Bay,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wampum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wampum. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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