What does ducat mean?
A ducat is a former European gold coin that first appeared in Italy during the medieval period and went on to become one of the most trusted currencies of the Renaissance world. Originally struck by the Republic of Venice — whose ducats bore the image of the ruling doge — the coin was so reliably pure that other states copied it for centuries. Because of its long association with wealth and commerce, the word took on an informal, often humorous second life: in the plural, 'ducats' can simply mean money, as when someone jokes they would pay 'good ducats' for something desirable. Today the word appears mainly in historical fiction, discussions of Shakespeare (notably The Merchant of Venice, where three thousand ducats are borrowed against a pound of flesh), and accounts of trade and banking in late medieval and early modern Europe. It lends any sentence a faintly antique, mercantile air.
A former gold coin of Europe, originally struck by Italian states and later widely imitated across the continent from the Middle Ages onward.
"Venetian ducats circulated throughout the eastern Mediterranean because their gold content was remarkably consistent."
Almost always encountered in historical or literary contexts today.
(Informal, usually in the plural) Money in general.
""That'll be fifty ducats," said the mechanic, only half joking."
The plural 'ducats' is the standard form and is more frequently used than the singular, especially in the informal sense meaning 'money'.
"He saved up enough ducats to buy a workshop near the Rialto."
Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice famously demanded 'a pound of flesh' as forfeit on a loan of three thousand ducats — making this little gold coin one of literature's most famous sums of money.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ducat
Ducat comes from the medieval Latin 'ducatu(s)', short for 'ducatu(s) regalis', meaning 'ducal coin', ultimately from Latin 'dux', 'leader' (the root of duke). The name arose because the first such coins were issued under ducal authority — most famously by Roger II of Sicily in the 12th century, and later by Venice, whose gold ducat became the standard of the genre. Related words sharing the 'dux' root include duke, duchy, and ducal.
Related word forms
How ducat is actually used
In modern English, 'ducat' survives chiefly in historical writing about medieval and Renaissance coinage. The informal sense meaning 'money' is dated and jocular, often used with mock-archaic flavor ('I'd pay good ducats for that'). The plural 'ducats' is far more common than the singular.
Easily confused with ducat
A docket is a list or calendar of cases to be heard, or a tag attached to goods, whereas a ducat is a gold coin.
A duct is a tube or channel conveying fluid or air, while a ducat is a former European gold coin.