Word
rupee
Phoneticsru·pee
US/ɹuˈpi/
UK/ɹˈuːpiː/
Definitions
01modern currency
n. the official unit of money used in countries like India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
n. the primary unit of currency in several countries, most notably India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Mauritius, and the Seychelles.
“The price of the meal was five hundred rupees in the local market.”
“The central bank intervened to stabilize the rupee after it reached a record low against the dollar during the summer.”
Usage
The word is a countable noun; the plural is 'rupees'.
02historical coin
n. a silver coin used in India in the past, from the 1500s until the 1900s.
n. a silver coin of a specific weight (one tola) that circulated in India from the 16th century through the early 20th century.
“The museum displayed a collection of silver rupees from the Mughal Empire.”
“Historical records indicate that the silver rupee remained remarkably consistent in weight and purity throughout the colonial administration.”
Archaic · Technical
Synonyms
Etymology
Coined by Sher Shah Suri, the Sultan of the Suri Empire 1540–1545 as Hindustani रुपीया / رُوپِییَہ (rūpīya), variant of रुपया / رُوپَیَہ (rūpaya, “rupee”), from Sanskrit रूप्यक (rūpyaka, “silver coin”), from रूप्य (rūpya, “wrought gold or silver; stamped coin; beautiful, well-shaped; impressed, stamped”). Doublet of rufiyaa and rupiah.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/rupee