1.
wad of bills; bundle of banknotes
A stack or bundle of paper currency. Often evokes an image of large amounts of cash.
札束を数えている。
He is counting a wad of bills.
机の上に札束が積まれていた。
Bundles of banknotes were stacked on the desk.
映画の中で犯人がスーツケースいっぱいの札束を持って逃げた。
In the movie, the criminal ran away with a suitcase full of bundles of cash.
USAGE:
札束 literally combines 札 (banknote) and 束 (bundle). It conjures images of wealth or large cash transactions and frequently appears in crime dramas and news stories.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 札束を数える (to count a wad of bills)
- 札束を積む (to stack bundles of bills)
- 札束で頬をたたく (to wave money around to get what you want — lit. "to slap someone's cheek with a wad of cash")
SIMILAR WORDS:
現金 means cash in general, while 札束 specifically refers to a visible stack or bundle of paper money.