Meaning & use
denarius
Last updated
UK/dɪˈnɑːriəs/
US/dɪˈnɑːriəs/
Meaning
nouncountable
A small silver coin used in ancient Rome, worth a day's pay for a typical soldier or laborer in some periods.
Grammar: Countable with an irregular plural: one denarius, many denarii.
Patterns
- pay in denarii
The soldier received a denarius for each day of service.
Archaeologists found a hoard of silver denarii in the field.
The denarius shows the emperor's head on one side.
Word forms
| plural | denarii |
|---|
Common combinations
- a silver denarius
- He held a silver denarius from the first century.
- Roman denarius
- A Roman denarius was often paid to soldiers.
- a hoard of denarii
- A hoard of denarii was dug up near the old road.
- minted a denarius
- The emperor minted a new denarius with his portrait.
Synonyms and how they differ
- coin
- Coin is general and covers any money in metal form, while denarius names one particular Roman silver coin.
- sesterce
- A sestertius was a different, lower-value Roman coin, so it is not an exact synonym.
Word family
Commonly confused: denarius or dinar?
denarius vs dinar
A dinar is a modern currency in several countries, while a denarius was an ancient Roman coin.
Practice
What was a denarius?
Choose one answer.
A denarius was a Roman coin. The other options are not related to money.
Make it your own
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