Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words

Piaster

 - 3 dictionary results

pi⋅as⋅ter

  [pee-as-ter, -ah-ster]
Use Piaster in a Sentence
–noun
1. a former coin of Turkey, the 100th part of a lira: replaced by the kurus in 1933.
2. a monetary unit of Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, and Syria, the 100th part of a pound.
3. a former monetary unit of South Vietnam: replaced by the dong in 1976.
4. the former peso or dollar of Spain and Spanish America.
Also, pi⋅as⋅tre.

Origin:
1605–15; < F piastre < It piastra thin sheet of metal, silver coin (short for piastra d'argento, lit., plate of silver), akin to piastro plaster
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Piaster
pi·as·ter also pi·as·tre   (pē-ās'tər, -ä'stər)   
n.  

  1. See Table at currency.

  2. Piece of eight.


[French piastre, from Italian piastra, thin metal plate, from Latin emplastrum, medical dressing; see plaster.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

piaster 
"Sp. dollar" (1630), also "monetary unit and coin of Turkey" (1611, in Turk., ghurush, originally debased Sp. dollars), from Fr. piastre, from It. piastra "thin metal plate," short for impiastro "plaster," from L. emplastrum, from Gk. emplastron (see plaster).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see Piaster on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way