Redenominate

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To assign a different denomination, category, or classification to something ; to replace one currency unit with another in a country's monetary system
2. To alter the denomination or designation applied to an item or entity ; to convert a nation's money to a new unit of account
3. To assign a fresh denomination to something ; to shift a country's currency to a new denomination or name

Etymology: "Redenominate" is a plain compound: the prefix "re-", meaning "again" or "anew," attached to "denominate," which means to name or give a denomination to something. To redenominate a currency is to give its units a new name or scale, most often by dropping zeros, so that a bill once worth a million becomes worth one. The prefix does the real work here: the currency is not renamed from scratch but renamed again, under a new denomination. The base verb "denominate" comes from Latin "denominare," built from "de-" and "nominare" ("to name"), and it has long been used for giving a name or title to something. Attaching "re-" to it produces a technical term for changing a currency's denomination, a sense that belongs mainly to economics and monetary policy.

Synonyms: rename, redesignate, reclassify