moola en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ˈmuːˌlɑː/
- /ˈmuː.lɑ/ (Multicultural-London-English)
- /ˈmuː.lə/ (UK)
- (US) audio
- /ˈmyː.lɑ/ (Multicultural-London-English)
- /ˈmʊ.lɑ/ (Multicultural-London-English)
Etymology
Unknown, attested since the 1920s. Suggested origins, none of which are accepted by mainstream lexicographers, include: * from Romani mol (“have value, be worth”) * from Irish moll óir (“heap of gold”) However, this is unlikely because of the difference in pronunciation. * from French moulin (“mill”) * from Chinook Jargon moola (“mill”) * from Sanskrit मूल्य (mūlya, “capital, principal”) * coined by Chuck Green, a friend of Damon Runyon
Meanings
-
(informal, uncountable) Money, cash.
“Well, to fix this house, we need money, correct? Does anyone know if we have any money? Anyone?” “Uh...” “Cash.” “Coin.” “Moola.” “Gold.” “Wonga.” “Rubles.” “Milk.” “Lettuce.” “Bread.” “Dough.” “Sweet cream.” “Stripper tips.” “Anyone?” “Colin Robinson was in charge of paying all the bills in the house, and now Colin Robinson is dead.”
2022 July 12, Stefani Robinson & Paul Simms, “Reunited” (16:24 from the start), in What We Do in the Shadows, season 4, episode 1, spoken by Nadja of Antipaxos (Natasia Demetriou):
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| moolah | alternative | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Synonyms
finances · oof · lovely jubbly · smackeroonies · cheese · funds · scratch · swag · spondulicks · flow · wonga · bread · ooftish · flizz · muck · fedi · wampum · dinero · dosh · smackers · simoleons · rhino · bread and honey · tender · brass · ackers · cream · jack · ching · yenom · paper · smackeroos · currency · mozzarella · spend · means · funding · mazuma · money · feds · blunt · bees and honey · legal tender · gwolla · shrapnel · dough · cake · coin · moola · clams · cheddar · lolly · gravy · scrilla · gwop · bones · Bugs Bunny
Translations (33)
fi fyrkka (informal: money) · sv stålar (informal: money) · ka მაყუთი (informal: money) · ru капу́ста (informal: money) · es plata (informal: money) · fr moula (informal: money) · ro mălai (informal: money) · fr thune (informal: money) · cmn 鈔票 /钞票 (informal: money) · fi tuohi (informal: money) · cmn 金錢 /金钱 (informal: money) · es pasta (informal: money) · fi hynä (informal: money) · it grana (informal: money) · af pitte (informal: money) · cs prachy (informal: money) · af blink (informal: money) · fr oseille (informal: money) · ro lovele (informal: money) · sv para (informal: money) · fr blé (informal: money) · fr pognon (informal: money) · sv kosing (informal: money) · af malie (informal: money) · fi massi (informal: money) · he כסף (informal: money) · de Penunze (informal: money) · pl mamona (informal: money) · es lana (informal: money) · pt grana (informal: money) · sv klöver (informal: money) · nl poen (informal: money) · sv deg (informal: money)
wikipedia: William Safire · wikipedia: Mario Pei · wikipedia: Damon Runyon