Gold & Silver Glossary: Precious-Metals Terms Defined
What this is
A plain-English glossary of the gold and silver terms you’ll meet when buying, storing, taxing, or selling precious metals — from spot price and premium to fineness, depositories, and the collectibles tax. Each entry is a short, jargon-free definition with the context that actually matters.
Precious-metals language is full of words that sound technical but hide a simple idea. We define each one straight, note why it matters, and link to the deeper guide where it applies — so a term you don’t know never stops you from making a sound decision.
How to use the glossary
Browse the full list below, or follow a term from wherever you ran into it. Every definition links back to the relevant guide, calculator, or buying page, and across to related terms, so you can build understanding without backtracking. If a word here is doing real work in a sales pitch — “proof,” “numismatic,” “leveraged” — the entry tells you what to watch for.
Start with the essentials
If you’re new, the terms that unlock the most are spot price, premium, troy ounce, bullion, and fineness. Together they explain what you’re buying, how it’s priced, and why the sticker never matches the spot price you see quoted.
What’s the difference between bullion and numismatic coins?
Bullion is valued mainly by its metal content and trades at a small premium over spot. Numismatic coins are valued for rarity, age, and condition, often far above their melt value — a collector’s market, not a bullion purchase.
Why are precious metals priced in troy ounces?
The troy ounce (about 31.10 grams) is the historical standard for precious metals and is heavier than the everyday “avoirdupois” ounce of about 28.35 grams. Always confirm which ounce a quote or scale uses.
Is everything here general information rather than advice?
Yes. These definitions are educational. Tax, IRA, and allocation specifics depend on your situation, so confirm them with a CPA or fee-only financial advisor before acting.
Explore the guides in this series
41 in-depth guides
1099-B
A 1099-B is an IRS information return a dealer or broker files to report the proceeds of certain sales, including some precious-metals buy-backs.
Read the guide02Allocated vs Unallocated
Allocated metal is specific, identifiable bars or coins held in your name, while unallocated metal is a paper claim against a provider’s general pool.
Read the guide03American Gold Eagle
The American Gold Eagle is the United States Mint’s flagship gold bullion coin.
Read the guide04Assay
An assay is a certified test that confirms a precious-metal item’s purity and weight.
Read the guide05Bid-Ask Spread
The bid-ask spread is the gap between the price a dealer pays to buy metal from you (the bid) and the price it charges to sell to you (the ask).
Read the guide06Britannia (Coin)
The Britannia is a gold bullion coin from the United Kingdom’s Royal Mint, struck at .9999 fineness since 2013.
Read the guide07Bullion
Bullion is precious metal, usually gold or silver, valued primarily by its weight and purity rather than by any collectible or face value.
Read the guide08Canadian Gold Maple Leaf
The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf is a gold bullion coin from the Royal Canadian Mint, struck at .9999 fineness.
Read the guide09Central Bank Reserves
Central bank reserves are the assets a national monetary authority holds to back its currency and manage its economy, including foreign currencies, government bonds, and gold.
Read the guide10Collectibles Tax
The collectibles tax is the federal capital-gains treatment that applies to physical precious metals held more than a year.
Read the guide11COMEX
COMEX is the main US futures exchange for trading gold, silver, and other metals.
Read the guide12Counterparty Risk
Counterparty risk is the chance that the other party to a financial arrangement fails to meet its obligation.
Read the guide13Custodian
A custodian is the IRS-approved firm that administers a self-directed IRA.
Read the guide14De-Dollarization
De-dollarization is a gradual shift by governments, central banks, and trading partners toward holding fewer US dollars in reserves and settling more trade in other currencies or assets.
Read the guide15Depository
A depository is a secure, insured third-party vault that stores precious metals on behalf of owners.
Read the guide16Dollar-Cost Averaging
Dollar-cost averaging is the practice of buying a fixed dollar amount of an asset at regular intervals, regardless of price.
Read the guide17ETF (Gold & Silver)
A gold or silver ETF (exchange-traded fund) is a fund that trades on a stock exchange and tracks the price of the metal, giving investors price exposure without holding physical bars or coins.
Read the guide18Fiat Currency
Fiat currency is government-issued money that holds value by official decree rather than by being backed by gold, silver, or any physical commodity.
Read the guide19Fineness
Fineness is the purity of a precious metal expressed as a decimal fraction of the whole, such as .999 or .9167.
Read the guide20Form 8300
Form 8300 is the IRS report a dealer files when it receives more than $10,000 in cash from a customer in a single transaction or in related transactions.
Read the guide21Fractional Bullion
Fractional bullion refers to coins and bars that weigh less than one troy ounce, such as a one-tenth or one-quarter ounce gold coin.
Read the guide22GLD & SLV
GLD and SLV are the ticker symbols for the largest gold and silver exchange-traded funds, each holding physical metal in a vault and issuing shares that track its price.
Read the guide23Gold-Silver Ratio
The gold-silver ratio is the number of ounces of silver it takes to buy one ounce of gold.
Read the guide24IRA-Eligible Metals
IRA-eligible metals are precious-metals products that meet IRS purity rules for a retirement account: gold at least .995 fine, silver .999, and platinum and palladium .9995.
Read the guide25Junk Silver
Junk silver is the common term for circulated United States coins minted in 1964 or earlier that contain 90 percent silver.
Read the guide26Karat
Karat is a measure of gold purity on a 24-part scale, where 24 karat is pure gold.
Read the guide27Krugerrand
The Krugerrand is a South African gold bullion coin struck in 22-karat gold (.9167 fine).
Read the guide28LBMA Good Delivery
LBMA Good Delivery is the wholesale accreditation standard set by the London Bullion Market Association for large gold and silver bars.
Read the guide29Liquidity
Liquidity is how easily an asset can be converted to cash at a price near its fair value, without a large discount or long wait.
Read the guide30Melt Value
Melt value is the worth of an item’s actual metal content, calculated as the current spot price multiplied by the troy weight and the metal’s purity.
Read the guide31Mint Mark
A mint mark is a small letter on a coin that identifies which facility struck it.
Read the guide32Numismatic
Numismatic refers to coins valued for their rarity, age, condition, or historical significance rather than just their metal content.
Read the guide33Paper Gold
Paper gold is any form of gold exposure that you hold without taking physical possession of the metal.
Read the guide34Premium (Over Spot)
A premium is the amount you pay above the spot price when buying a physical coin or bar.
Read the guide35Proof vs BU
Proof and BU describe two finishes on the same coin.
Read the guide36Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)
A Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) is the amount the IRS requires you to withdraw each year from a traditional IRA or similar retirement account once you reach the qualifying age.
Read the guide37Safe Haven
A safe haven is an asset investors tend to buy during market turmoil in hopes of preserving value.
Read the guide38Self-Directed IRA
A self-directed IRA is an individual retirement account that can hold alternative assets, including physical precious metals, real estate, and private holdings.
Read the guide39Spot Price
The spot price is the current market price to buy or sell one troy ounce of a precious metal for immediate settlement.
Read the guide40Spot vs Futures
The spot price is what metal costs for immediate delivery right now.
Read the guide41Troy Ounce
A troy ounce is the standard unit of weight for precious metals, equal to about 31.1035 grams.
Read the guide