Eli5 what it means when a currency is said to be backed by gold

Question

I see this all the time, mostly when references are made about the dollar and how it was once backed by gold

In: 164

Answer 1

Earlier money was just pieces of paper which said that the government promises you a certain amount of gold in exchange for.

Nowadays money is just pieces of paper that are valuable because the government says so, and the majority of people trust the government.