Etymograph

English

simoleon

Simoleon comes from English simon ‘sixpence coin’.

  1. English1500–presentsimon1‘sixpence coin’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1903simoleon1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English simoleon
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1903, O. Henry pseudonym; William Sydney Porte, Hygeia at the Solito: “T'ought I was lyin' about the money, did ye?…”.

Lineage

  1. English1500–presentsimonWiktionary, English simoleon‘sixpence coin’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1903simoleonWiktionary, English simoleon. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1903, O. Henry pseudonym; William Sydney Porte, Hygeia at the Solito: “T'ought I was lyin' about the money, did ye?…”

The story

Most likely a late-19th-century blend of simon (‘dollar’), from simon (‘sixpence coin’) (17th-century British slang, perhaps related to simony?), and Napoleon (‘French gold coin worth 20 francs, bearing the image of Napoleon III’). The gaming sense may have been chosen for its similarity to Sim.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Every English word from English simon

Today it means

noun A dollar.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “simoleon”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / English simon / simoleon

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