greenbacks

noun

plural of greenback
as in bills
a piece of printed paper used as money in the United States she threw a few greenbacks on the counter to pay for the drinks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of greenbacks Countries buying oil did so in greenbacks. — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 7 Apr. 2026 Alas, greenbacks are hardly available to people such as Tamara Mendoza, 65, who lives in the working-class Valle district. — Mery Mogollon, Los Angeles Times, 30 Jan. 2026 If Florida State continues to lose games against those teams, greenbacks could start to flow in to help with the buyout. — Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025 That vault of greenbacks comes with a set of expectations from fans, your bosses and the boosters/collectives funneling the nation’s finest athletes into the factory. — Cedric Golden, Austin American Statesman, 17 Oct. 2025 In an attempt to boost gamer bankrolls, this only occasionally profitable bettor will attempt to stack greenbacks under the lights. — Brad Evans, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025 Dude confiscated it for greenbacks, melted it down, and buried it? — Brian Domitrovic, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for greenbacks
  1. bills
  2. dollars
  3. cash
  4. notes
  5. money
Noun
  • Therefore, how much of the impact caused by El Niño will ultimately translate into the bills handed to consumers remains to be seen.
    — , CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026
  • While the girl returned to her family in the fall, Maloney and her husband are still behind on bills.
    — Moriah Balingit, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of bills
Noun
  • As trillions of dollars change hands, inheritors won’t just take on their family fortunes—they’ll also have the chance to reshape how that wealth is invested, spent, and put to work.
    — Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
  • State and federal prosecutors allege the fire destroyed about $500 million in paper products stored inside and caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to the building.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of dollars
Noun
  • West Suburban closed in March, after the hospital’s CEO said problems with the billing systems left the hospital short on cash.
    — Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Down payment expectations are meaningfully larger too; these programs generally want the borrower to have real equity in the deal from day one, and the strongest pricing goes to borrowers who bring more cash and better credit.
    — Karen Koehler, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of cash
Noun
  • Preserve messages and notes about what happened and check whether clean backups are available.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • As Madrid has grown into a tourist hot spot, foreign visitors are also snatching up his fans, which Llerandi notes are more reliable than their portable, electric counterparts.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of notes
Noun
  • Palo Alto is putting its money where its mouth is on agentic security, announcing Tuesday the acquisition of Console for an undisclosed sum.
    — Zev Fima, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Gordon was completed swiftly, earning Newcastle more money than anticipated (with €70m benchmarked).
    — George Caulkin, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of money

Browse Nearby Words

greenback
greenbacks
greeneries
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Greenbacks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/greenbacks. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All