face value

See also: face-value

English

Etymology

The term exists because a contrast between nominal value and market value is sometimes materially relevant for currencies.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

face value (countable and uncountable, plural face values)

1. The amount or value listed on a bill, note, stamp, etc.; the stated value or amount.
2. (idiomatic) No more or less than what is stated; a literal or direct meaning or interpretation.

   Please take this comment at face value and don't try to read anything into it.

   • 2020 June 3, Sam Mullins OBE discusses with Stefanie Foster, “LTM: a new chapter begins at 40”, in Rail, page 52:

     Few museums have such a coherent collection that covers so many different areas of interest as the London Transport Museum. At face value, it is a collection of urban transport in London. In reality, it is so much more.

Synonyms

• par value

Derived terms

• accept at face value
• on the face of it
• take at face value

Translations

the stated value or amount

• Catalan: valor facial m, valor nominal m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 面值 (zh) (miànzhí), 票面金額／票面金额 (piàomiàn jīn'é), 額面／额面 (zh) (émiàn)

• Czech: nominální hodnota f
• Danish: pålydende n, pålydende værdi
• Dutch: nominale waarde f, naamwaarde f
• Estonian: nimiväärtus
• Finnish: nimellisarvo (fi)
• French: valeur faciale (fr) f, valeur nominale f
• German: Nennwert (de) m
• Greek: ονομαστική αξία (el) (onomastikí axía)
• Hungarian: névérték (hu)
• Irish: luach ainmniúil m
• Italian: valore nominale (it) m, valore facciale m (uncommon)
• Japanese: 額面 (ja) (がくめん, gakumen)
• Kyrgyz: номиналдык нарк (ky) m (nominaldık nark)
• Latvian: nomināls m, nominālvērtība f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: pålydende verdi m, valør (no) m

  Nynorsk: pålydande verdi m, valør m

• Polish: wartość nominalna f, nominał (pl) m
• Portuguese: valor nominal m
• Russian: номина́льная сто́имость f (nominálʹnaja stóimostʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: номинална вредност f, номинална вриједност f

  Roman: nominalna vrednost f, nominalna vrijednost f

• Spanish: valor facial m, valor nominal (es) m
• Swedish: nominalvärde n, valör (sv) c
• Welsh: wynebwerth (cy), gwerth enwol m

See also

• denomination
• grain of salt
• pinch of salt
• read between the lines