English Reference
noun

abe

n.
US /ˈeɪb/ abe

  1. 01 C1 Advanced American EnglishSlang

    a five-dollar bill in the United States.

    a five-dollar bill in US currency, so named because Abraham Lincoln's portrait appears on it.

    Simple

    He reached into his pocket and pulled out an abe to pay for the coffee.

    In context

    The street performer was delighted when a passerby dropped an abe into his hat instead of the usual loose change.

    Usage

    Usually written with a capital 'A' as 'Abe'.

Shinzo Abe, the late Japanese prime minister, had reached an entente with Putin over the territory, with visits by Japanese citizens to family graves resuming and talk of a future peace treaty.

The Guardian· 13 Aug 2026

Etymology 1

Shortened from Abraham. In the slang sense for money, refers to the picture of Abraham Lincoln on the currency.

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Japanese 阿部 (Abe), Japanese 安部 (Abe) or Japanese 安倍 (Abe).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level C2 · Proficiency
Frequency Frequent
Updated