SATURDAY, JULY 25, 2020 -
https://www.dictionary.com/e/word-of-the-day/
coffers
[ kaw-ferz, kof-erz ]
plural noun
funds, especially of a government or corporation.
WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF COFFERS?
English coffers, “treasury, funds,” is the plural of coffer, “box, chest (for valuables).” The Middle English cofre (and coffre, coffer) had the same senses in the singular and plural. Middle English cofre comes from Old French cofre, from Latin cophinus “basket, hamper,” from Greek kóphinos “big basket; unit of measure.” Cophinus, going the easy way, yields coffin in English via Old French coffin “basket; coffer; sarcophagus.” (Latin ph from Greek words frequently becomes f in the Romance languages.) Cophinus, going the hard way, becomes cophn(o); the n then dissimilates to r, cofn(o) becoming cofre, just as Latin Londinium “London” becomes Londn(ium), the second n dissimilating to Londr- (Londres in Modern French). Coffers entered English in the 13th century.
HOW IS COFFERS USED?
For decades, American presidential campaigns have churned out enormous quantities of swag—$5 buttons, $15 mugs, $75 guacamole bowls—to promote candidates, fill campaign coffers and gather sophisticated data about supporters. - MIHIR ZAVERI AND ALAN YUHAS, "WHERE DOES ALL THE SWAG GO AFTER CAMPAIGNS FAIL? EVERYWHERE," NEW YORK TIMES, FEBRUARY 25, 2020
[The team] required shareholders to buy six season tickets, hoping to fill the bleachers and the coffers in a single go. - AUSTIN SMITH, "THE LORDS OF LAMBEAU," HARPER'S MAGAZINE, JANUARY 2017
Following COVID19 The UK government coffers at the moment look pretty empty.