Another small coin

[Jesse Sheidlower]

>
> A long-dormant neuron just fired.
>
> When I was young, I occasionally heard the expression 'case quarter' =
> 'quarter' [coin]. I haven't heard it recently.
>
> This was not a minimizer/intensifier or whatever, like 'red cent', 'thin
> dime'. 'Case quarter' seemed to mean exactly '[a] quarter'; e.g.,
>
> Q: How much is this newspaper?
>
> A: Case quarter.
>
> This would be circa 1960, Detroit.
>
> Anybody recognize this? Is it a special, uh, case of a more general
> construction? Have I misheard something?

We've discussed this here before; see DARE. This sense is 'a coin of
a particular stated denomination, as contrasted with the same amount
of money made up of several smaller coins'. A "case dollar" is a
dollar coin, as opposed to the sum of a dollar.

I don't think your above example is accurate, since this use of
"case" is not relevant to quantities of money; that is, there
would be no need for a newsman to require a case quarter as
opposed to the sum of twenty-five cents.

DARE cites it to 1954, BTW.

Jesse Sheidlower
OED