English

A solidus of Constantine.

A Byzantine solidus.

Noun

solidus ‎(plural solidi or soliduses)

1. (historical) Various medieval and early modern coins or units of account, particularly:
   1. A Roman ~23k gold coin introduced by Diocletian in AD 301.
   2. Its successor Byzantine coins, from the eleventh century onward of progressively debased weight and purity.
   3. (obsolete) Synonym of sol or sou: a Carolingian unit of account equivalent to a solidus of silver.
   4. (obsolete) Synonym of soldo: the silver coins of various Italian states.
   5. (obsolete) Synonym of shilling: an English unit of account and, following the Tudor dynasty, silver coin.
2. (historical) The weight of the Roman gold coin, 1/60 of a Roman pound under Diocletian or 1/72 lb. (about 4.5 grams) after Constantine.
3. (historical) A medieval French weight, 1/20 of the Carolingian pound.
4. (typography) Synonym of slash ⟨/⟩, originally (Britain) in its use as the shilling mark and now its formal designation by the ISO and Unicode.
5. (typography) The formal name of the oblique strikethrough overlay (as in A̷ and B̸) in Unicode.
6. (typography) The division line between the numerator and the denominator of a fraction, whether horizontal or oblique.
7. (chemistry, physics) The line in a phase diagram marking the temperatures and pressures below which a given substance is a stable solid.

Synonyms

• (Roman coin): nomisma, bezant (in Greek and Byzantine contexts)
• (debased Byzantine successors): nomisma, hyperpyron, bezant
• (typographic symbols): See slash and strikethrough

See also

• (Roman coin under Diocletian): argenteus (notionally 1/10 solidus); nummus (1/40); radiate (1/200); laureate (1/500); denarius (1/1000)
• (Roman coin after Constantine I): miliarense (notionally 1/12 solidus); siliqua (1/24; a modern term); follis (1/180); nummus (1/7200)
• (Byzantine coins): dinar (a ~20k Arabian copy); semissis (notionally 1/2 solidus); tremissis (1/3 solidus)
• (English coin): pound, pound sterling, libra (20 solidi); penny, denarius (1/12 solidus)
• (Roman weight): Roman pound, librum (72 solidi); siliqua (1/24 solidus)
• (French weight): livre, librum, pound (20 solidi); denarius, denier (1/12 solidus)

Translations

See also

• liquidus
• macron
• vinculum

References

• Oxford English Dictionary, "solidus, n.¹" and "solidus, n.²"
• solidus in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• solidus at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• dulosis

Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *solh₂idʰos, suffixed form of root *solh₂- ‎(“integrate, whole”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈso.li.dus/, [ˈsɔ.lɪ.dʊs]

Adjective

solidus m ‎(feminine solida, neuter solidum); first/second declension

1. solid

Inflection

First/second declension.

Descendants

Noun

solidus m ‎(genitive solidī); second declension

1. (historical) A solidus: a Roman ~23-carat gold coin introduced by Diocletian in AD 301.
2. (Medieval, historical) A bezant: the solidus's debased Byzantine successors.
3. (Medieval, historical) A shilling, as a unit of account or silver coin.
   • c. 1300, Tractatus de Ponderibus et Mensuris

     Libra continet viginti solidos

     The [London] pound contains twenty shillings.

Inflection

Second declension.

Descendants

References

• solidus in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• solidus in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• SOLIDUS in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
• Félix Gaffiot (1934), “solidus”, in Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Paris: Hachette.
• solidus in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• solidus in Ramminger, Johann (accessed 16 July 2016) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700, pre-publication website, 2005-2016
• solidus in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
• solid in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911