# Why is a $10 Bill Called a Sawbuck?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 21, 1999, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104 "1999-10-21T01:25:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Torgo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@Torgo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Torgo)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 1999, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104/1 "1999-10-21T01:25:00Z")

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I’m a-lookin’ at one right now. Can’t see no saws on it…??

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Tim  
“My hovercraft is full of eels.”

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**Author:** ![Future\_Bible\_Hero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e4f/32.png) [@Future\_Bible\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Future_Bible_Hero)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 1999, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104/2 "1999-10-21T01:27:00Z")

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The “X”, as in ten, looks like a saw horse.

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**Author:** ![typertrphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@typertrphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typertrphy)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 1999, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104/3 "1999-10-21T01:29:00Z")

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A hand saw costs $ 10.00

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**Author:** ![jazzmine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jazzmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jazzmine)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 1999, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104/4 "1999-10-21T01:37:00Z")

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if you saw ten bucks, you could change them in for a ten dollar bill

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**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 1999, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-a-10-bill-called-a-sawbuck/4104/5 "1999-10-21T01:52:00Z")

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From [What’s the origin of the word “buck”?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_179.html) :

> [@](#):
>
> Curiously, “sawbuck,” a ten-dollar bill, appears to be only indirectly related to buck. It got its name because some old ten-spots were denominated with Roman numeral Xs. The Xs looked like the X-shaped arms of the benches sawyers used to hold up logs for cutting. (Pictogrammic depiction: X-X.) The benches, which were vaguely similar to today’s sawhorses, were called sawbucks.

_Return of the Straight Dope_, Cecil Adams

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“The secret of life is, there ain’t no secret, and you don’t get your money back.”