Meanings
-
1
noun
a former currency of Brazil, introduced in 1986 and divided into one hundred centavos
Brazil replaced the cruzeiro with the cruzado in 1986.
-
2
noun
historical: any of several Portuguese or Castilian coins and monetary units, especially a Portuguese gold or silver coin marked with a cross
The merchant's account valued the bullion at eighteen million Portuguese cruzados.
Thesaurus
Etymology
Borrowed from Portuguese cruzado, literally 'marked with a cross,' from cruz, 'cross,' plus -ado. The Portuguese coin was named for the cross stamped on it; the same name was later reused for Brazil's late-twentieth-century currency.