franc
Americannoun
plural
francs-
an aluminum or nickel coin and monetary unit of France, Belgium, and Luxembourg until the euro was adopted, equal to 100 centimes. F., f., Fr, fr.
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any of the monetary units of various other nations and territories, as Liechtenstein, Martinique, Senegal, Switzerland, and Tahiti, equal to 100 centimes.
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a former silver coin of France, first issued under Henry III.
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a former monetary unit of Algeria, Guinea, and Morocco.
noun
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Also called: French franc. the former standard monetary unit of France, most French dependencies, Andorra, and Monaco, divided into 100 centimes; replaced by the euro in 2002
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the former standard monetary unit of Belgium ( Belgian franc ) and Luxembourg ( Luxembourg franc ), divided into 100 centimes; replaced by the euro in 2002
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Also called: Swiss franc. the standard monetary unit of Switzerland and Liechtenstein, divided into 100 centimes
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Also called: franc CFA. CFA franc. franc of the African financial community. the standard monetary unit, comprising 100 centimes, of the following countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo
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the standard monetary unit of Burundi ( Burundi franc ), Comoros ( Comorian franc ), Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaïre; Congolese franc ), Djibouti ( Djibouti franc ), Guinea ( Guinea franc ), Madagascar ( franc malgache ), Rwanda ( Rwanda franc ), and French Polynesia and New Caledonia ( French Pacific franc )
Etymology
Origin of franc
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English frank, from Middle French franc, so called because the coin was first inscribed with the name of the king as Medieval Latin Rēx Francōrum “King of the Franks”; Frank 1 ( def. ); frank 1 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This estimate doesn’t take into account the strengthening of the Swiss franc against the dollar, analysts say.
The federal government is also pledging to provide funding of up to 20m francs in addition to facilitating talks between the victims, officials and insurers to reach amicable compensation agreements, Jans said.
From BBC
Alongside tariffs, companies in Switzerland have also struggled due to the appreciation of the Swiss franc, as investors flowed into the safe-haven currency amid last year’s geopolitical tensions.
The Swiss franc appreciated against the U.S. dollar in January, which makes Switzerland’s imports cheaper but exports less attractive to foreign buyers.
Alphabet also issued $11.5 billion of bonds denominated in British pounds and Swiss francs.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
