Victorian & Edwardian · word · noun (plural)
spondulicks
spon-DOO-liks /spɒnˈdjuː.lɪks/ (UK), /spɑnˈd(j)u.lɪks/ (US)pronunciation given by a dictionary
First recorded1851
Money, cash. American slang of the 1850s of unknown origin (sometimes said to be from a Greek word for a shell used as money); it faded in the US but survived in British English.
Where it was first recorded
Athens Post (Tennessee), 26 December 1851 — earliest citation in Green's Dictionary of Slang (Etymonline gives 1856)
Also spelled: spondulix, spondulics, spondoolicks
In its own time
Satiated with greenbacks and spondoulicks my soul thirsted for specie
Today
Modern exampleI'd love the vintage jacket, but I haven't got the spondulicks this month.
Fine to use today as a jokey word for money, mainly in British English.
Questions
What does spondulicks mean?
Money, cash. American slang of the 1850s of unknown origin (sometimes said to be from a Greek word for a shell used as money); it faded in the US but survived in British English.
When was spondulicks first used?
It is first recorded 1851 — Athens Post (Tennessee), 26 December 1851 — earliest citation in Green's Dictionary of Slang (Etymonline gives 1856).
Can you still use spondulicks today?
Fine to use today as a jokey word for money, mainly in British English.
Sources
- spondulicks — Online Etymology Dictionary
- spondulics, n. — Green's Dictionary of Slang
- spondulicks — Merriam-Webster
- spondulicks — Wiktionary
Checked 2026-09-30 · verdict: attested — found in the dictionaries and texts listed above