Fungible

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈfÊŒn.dʒɪ.b(É™)l/

Origin

1765 as noun, 1818 as adjective, from Medieval Latin fungibilis, from Latin fungor ("I perform, I discharge a duty") (English function) + -ible("able to"). Originally legal term.

Online Etymology Dictionary

Full definition of fungible

Adjective

1. (finance and commerce) Able to be substituted for something of equal value or utility; interchangeable, exchangeable, replaceable.
• 1876 1877, Samuel Dana Horton, Silver and Gold and Their Relation to the Problem of Resumption, page 116Gold is fungible. Silver is fungible; that is, these metals are both so homogeneous that, if I get a pound of pure gold, for example, it is indifferent to me whether it be this pound or that pound, one is as good as another
• 2011, Will Self, “The frowniest spot on Earth”, London Review of Books, XXXIII.9:At the core of Kasarda’s conception of the aerotropolis lies the notion that space – unlike time – is fungible.

Derived terms

• fungibility

Noun

1. (chiefly in the plural) Any fungible item.