book token
- noun
- UK
- She used her book token to buy a new novel.
Examples
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She gave me a book token for my birthday, so I can choose whichever novel I like.
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The prize for the essay competition was a £10 book token.
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You can use this book token at most major bookstores across the country.
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I received a book token for my birthday.
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She gave me a book token for my birthday, so I can choose whichever novel I like.
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The prize for the essay competition was a £10 book token.
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You can use this book token at most major bookstores across the country.
Synonyms
A paper or code you can use to pay for something at a lower price
How Valuable
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'book token' is compositionally transparent: 'book' specifies the target goods and 'token' denotes a voucher or substitute for payment, so a learner who knows both meanings can infer it is a voucher for books. This is a straightforward, cross-linguistically common naming pattern (e.g., 'meal token', 'gift token'), making it immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituents.
Etymology
Book token comes from the old idea of giving a small ticket or token that you could trade for a book at a shop. So today book token means 'a voucher that can be exchanged for books or e-books'.