A
AU, About Uncirculated, Almost Uncirculated - a circulated coin that only shows slight wear
American Eagle - A US Mint coin available in Gold, Silver, and Paltinum
ANA, American Numismatics Assoc. - a non profit numismatics assoc. founded in 1888
Ask Price - the price a dealer sells to you
B
Bid Price - the price a dealer purchases from you
Bourse Floor - a term for the physical location of a coin show
BU - Brilliant Uncirculated
Bullion - metal valued by weight
Bullion Coin - a legal tender coin valued by weight
Business Strike - a regular issue coin struck for commerce
C
C - coins struck at the Charlotte, N.C. mint.
Cameo - Proof coins with frosted devices
CC - coins struck at the Carson City, Nv. mint
Certified Coin - a coin graded and encapsulated
Circulated - a worn coin that has been used for commerce
Coin World - a weekly periodical established in 1960
Common Date - a readily available issue
Cost - Dealer paid price.
D
D - coins struck at the Dahlonega, Ga. Mint from 1838-1861 or Denver, Co. mint from 1906 to present
Dealer - a person who buys, sells, and/or trades coins
Double Eagle - older coin with a $20 face value
E
Eagle - older coin with a $10 face value
EF - extra fine
F
F - fine
Fiat Currency - bills and coins NOT backed by metal value
Frost - crystallized metal effect seen on some coins
G
G - good
Gem - high grade coin
Grade - numerical scale indicating the condition of a coin
I
Indian - gold coins struck between 1907 - 1932
Intrinsic Value - metal value contained in a coin
L
Legal Tender - official government currency which can be used to pay debts
Liberty - figure used in many US coin designs, also Gold coins struck between 1839 -1907
M
Melt, Melt Value - intrinsic metal value
Mint - coining facility
Mint State - a business strike coin never circulated
Mintage - Number of coins struck in a particular year
Morgan Dollar - silver dollar struck between 1878 - 1904 and again in 1921
Motto - In God We Trust inscription on a coin
MS - Mint State
N
New - coin never in circulation
No Motto - coin struck without the motto In God We Trust
NGC, Numismatic Guaranty Corp. - third party grading service
Numismatics - the science of money, coins, tokens, inscribed bars, and all related items
Numismatist - student, collector, or dealer of numismatics
O
O - coins struck at the New Orleans, La. mint
P
P - term for coins stuck at the Philadelphia, Pa. mint
PCGS, Professional Coin Grading Service - third party grading service
Peace Dollar - Silver dollar struck between 1921 to 1935
PNG - Professional Numismatists Guild
PQ - Premium Quality coin
PR - Proof coin
Proof - limited mintage coin struck from a special die
R
Rare, Rarity - term indicating a difficult coin with in a series to find
Raw - coin that has not been graded
S
S - coin struck at the San Francisco, Ca. mint
Saint St. Gaudens - $20 Gold coin struck between 1907 - 1932
Sheldon Scale - 1 to 70 numerical coin grading scale introduced in 1949
Sight Seen - cleanest, brightest, highest quality coin, usually sold at a premium
Sight Unseen - spotted, dull, lower quality coin, usually sold at a discount
Slabbed Coin - slang for certified coin
Stella - limited mintage $4 gold coin struck between 1879 - 1880
U
UNC - short for uncirculated
Uncirculated - coin never in circulation
W
W - coin struck at the West Point, NY mint
X
XF - Extra Fine