specie

noun

Pronunciation: /ˈspiːʃi/

Definition

Money in the form of gold or silver coins rather than paper currency or digital credit.

Examples

• The contract stipulated that all debts must be settled in specie rather than bank notes.

• During the financial crisis, citizens rushed to the bank to exchange their paper holdings for hard specie.

• The government struggled to maintain enough specie in the treasury to back the circulating paper currency.

Synonyms of specie

Words with a similar meaning to specie:

• coin
• cash
• bullion
• hard currency

Browse the full Anaversity dictionary