thirty pieces of silver
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
The sum of money that Judas Iscanot received from the chief priest for the betrayal of his Master (Matt. xxvi, 15); hence used proverbially of a bribe or "blood-money.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “thirty pieces of silver” mean?
The sum of money that Judas Iscanot received from the chief priest for the betrayal of his Master (Matt. xxvi, 15); hence used proverbially of a bribe or "blood-money.
Is “thirty pieces of silver” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.