What does demonetise mean?
Demonetise means to officially withdraw money — typically specific coins or banknotes — from circulation so that it ceases to be legal tender. Governments take this step for reasons ranging from combating counterfeiting and corruption to managing inflation, and the process usually involves exchanging old notes for new ones within a set window. The word has also acquired a prominent modern sense in digital media: platforms such as YouTube are said to demonetise videos or entire channels when they restrict or remove their advertising revenue. The term derives from the Latin moneta, meaning mint or money, combined with the negative prefix de-, and it entered English in the nineteenth century alongside other coinage-related vocabulary. Its American spelling is demonetize. Demonetisation events tend to be memorable because they abruptly alter what people can legally spend.
verbTo demonetise something, especially coins or banknotes, is to officially withdraw it from use as legal currency. In a broader modern sense, it can mean to strip a platform or activity of its ability to generate revenue.
- To officially withdraw coins or banknotes from circulation as legal tender.
- To deprive content, a creator, or a platform of advertising revenue or monetisation (common in digital media contexts).
"The central bank announced plans to demonetise the country's largest banknotes within a week."
"The Reserve Bank of India moved to demonetise the two highest-denomination notes with immediate effect."
"YouTube demonetised his channel after repeated policy strikes, cutting off his main source of income."
When India demonetised its 500 and 1,000 rupee notes overnight in 2016, 86% of the country's cash became worthless paper in a single announcement.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of demonetise
Demonetise combines the negative prefix de- with monetise, which traces back to the Latin moneta, a title of Juno in whose temple Roman coins were minted — hence its later sense of money itself. English formed the word during the nineteenth century as governments began systematically withdrawing particular issues of coins and notes from circulation. It shares this root with monetary, mint, and money itself, all descending through Old French from that same Latin source.
Related word forms
How demonetise is actually used
The spelling 'demonetize' is standard American English, while 'demonetise' follows British conventions. The word carries a formal register in financial and political contexts but has become common in casual online discussion about creators losing ad revenue. The digital sense is a recent extension of the older monetary meaning.
Easily confused with demonetise
To monetise is to convert something into a source of income or to introduce it as currency; to demonetise is to do the opposite — to withdraw its monetary status or earning power.