1. a small silver coin of ancient Greece worth one-sixth of a drachma
Usage: historical
2. a small amount of money; a modest contribution
Usage: archaic

Examples

• The ancient Greek merchant counted his obolus coins carefully.
• In classical Athens, an obolus could buy a day’s worth of bread.
• The poor widow offered her obolus to the temple fund.
• Archaeological excavations have uncovered many obolus coins from the 5th century BCE.
• He contributed his obolus to the charitable cause, though it was all he could afford.
• The historian explained that six obolus coins equaled one drachma in ancient currency.