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Discussion Groups / British English / November 2004"pences"
We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, have we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such as "five pees". Until today, when I heard a radio advert (for one of the many cheap calls providers" which referred, over and over again, to "pences". That advert must have been through many, many hands, from the person who wrote it to the people who approved it, to the director who recorded it and the actors who voiced it. Can nobody distinguish between a singular and a plural any more?  SignatureMolly Mockford I think I've been too long on my own, but the little green goblin that lives under the sink says I'm OK - and he's never wrong, so I must be! (My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) >We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, have >we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such as "five [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >and the actors who voiced it. Can nobody distinguish between a singular >and a plural any more? Can nobody even read the back of a coin - "ONE PENNY", "TWO PENCE", FIVE PENCE", TEN PENCE", "TEWNTY PENCE", "FIFTY PENCE"? SignaturePeter Duncanson UK (posting from u.c.l.e) "Peter Duncanson" <mail@peterduncanson.net> wrote... > >We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, > >have we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > Can nobody even read the back of a coin - "ONE PENNY", "TWO PENCE", > FIVE PENCE", TEN PENCE", "TEWNTY PENCE", "FIFTY PENCE"? Golly! That one coin will fund your retirement. Matti >"Peter Duncanson" <mail@peterduncanson.net> wrote... >> [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > >Golly! That one coin will fund your retirement. Sadly that was my typo. SignaturePeter Duncanson UK (posting from u.c.l.e) > >"Peter Duncanson" <mail@peterduncanson.net> wrote... > >> [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > > Sadly that was my typo. I missed the typo, as well, but was athinking that the legend on the coin must be up to at least 50 billion pounds by now. Signaturehttp://www.dacha.freeuk.com/sotr/ Songs of the Ridings by F.W. Moorman: 25 Yorkshire Dialect Poems (Newly annotated in the year 2000) > > >"Peter Duncanson" <mail@peterduncanson.net> wrote... > > >> [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > > > > >Golly! That one coin will fund your retirement. Over here in America, that statement, sadly, is getting close to the literal truth. > We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, have > we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such as "five [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > and the actors who voiced it. Can nobody distinguish between a singular > and a plural any more? It may be horrible, but it's not new. OED2: b. Applied colloq. as sing., orig. to a new penny of the decimal currency introduced in 1971 (see penny 1), and hence gen. 1971 Record (Oxf. Univ. Press) Dec. 10/2 The computer was found to be rounding up to the nearest pence the Bank Code Numbers on the Wages Slips. 1973 Daily Tel. 24 Oct. 16 In our village shop a customer asked for some small change but the shopkeeper was unable to oblige as she was very short or two pences and one pences. 1974 Ibid. 19 Dec. 12 In shops and elsewhere I often hear the ungrammatical term one pence. I presume this is because the occurrence of a single penny is becoming a thing of the past. 1975 M. Bradbury History Man i. 3 She leads her daily deputation to the manager with comparative, up-to-the-minute lists showing how Fine Fare, on lard, is one pence up on Sainsbury's, or vice versa. 1977 Times Lit. Suppl. 29 Apr. 528/3 The new and the supplemented lexical entries equally reflect the times, with+p (but not the singular use of pence) for new penny. 1979 Daily Tel. 11 Apr. 2/1 A taxi passenger who refused to pay an extra charge of one pence on his fare+was killed by the driver, police said in Manila. Pure speculation on my part: referring to 'new pennies' as 'pence' and 'pences' in all circumstances served to distinguish more conveniently between new money and old money (in cash rather than social terms) than 'new penny' versus 'old penny' with the traditional plurals for 'penny'. Whatever happened to 'Fine Fare', anyway? I used to shop in the Leicester one when I lived in the UK. Final point: ROT13 works beautifully on 'penc'. I shall stop now. Giles. > We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, have > we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such as "five [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > and the actors who voiced it. Can nobody distinguish between a singular > and a plural any more? Hi, I'm not a native speaker, can anyone tell me the differences between penny, pees, pences ?? It seems to me that most people use "pees" for the plural and "penny" for the singular ? is it correct ? Thanks, JS >I'm not a native speaker, can anyone tell me the differences between > penny, pees, pences ?? "Penny" is singular, "pee" or "pees" is horrid (see below), "pences" is the equivalent of referring to "sheeps" since "pence" is the correct plural form. >It seems to me that most people use "pees" for the plural and "penny" >for the singular ? is it correct ? I think that most people use "pee" for both singular and plural. It began when we switched to decimal currency in 1971. Previously pence had been indicated by the abbreviation "d" (for denarii). To distinguish the "new" pence from the old, the abbreviation "p" was introduced. People at once began talking about so many "pee". This is vile. Even Americans know enough to say so many cents, not so many "c". (If any of my American friends should read this, I'm only teasing.) SignatureJohn Hall "If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts; but if he will be content to begin with doubts, he shall end in certainties." Francis Bacon (1561-1626) At 18:44:10 on Tue, 2 Nov 2004, John Hall <nospam_nov03@jhall.co.uk> wrote in <Hezs3IE6V9hBFwGL@jhall.demon.co.uk>: >>I'm not a native speaker, can anyone tell me the differences between >> penny, pees, pences ?? [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > >I think that most people use "pee" for both singular and plural. However, the correct usage (for the benefit of non-native speakers) is one penny, two pence, three pence etc. You may occasionally hear "two pence" pronounced as "tuppence" or "ten pence" pronounced as "tenpence" (i.e. the "pence" part is unstressed), because these are specific values of coins so one can be referring to either an object or a value. Prior to decimalisation, there was a delightful coin known as a "thruppenny bit" (corruption of "threepenny") which was worth 3d, or three old pence. The value was known as "thruppence" (from "three pence"). There is no 3p coin any longer, so both "thrupenny" and "thruppence" have died out. <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. SignatureMolly Mockford I think I've been too long on my own, but the little green goblin that lives under the sink says I'm OK - and he's never wrong, so I must be! (My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) ><http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. That was a favourite coin of mine too. I believe that it only existed in that form for a couple of decades, being preceded by a "silver" thruppenny bit similar in size to the current 5p coin. SignatureJohn Hall "If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts; but if he will be content to begin with doubts, he shall end in certainties." Francis Bacon (1561-1626) >> <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >> has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. > > That was a favourite coin of mine too. I believe that it only existed > in that form for a couple of decades, being preceded by a "silver" > thruppenny bit similar in size to the current 5p coin. That's true, although I thought the polygonal coin existed for more than a couple of decades. There's an interesting local survival of the name. At Limehouse Basin (in London, where the Regent's Canal meets the Thames), the lock-keeper's office is in a polygonal building frequently referred to by boaters as "the thruppenny bit". It's a particularly interestinge usag, as the building post-dates the introduction of decimal currency and the abolition of the relevant coin. -- Mike Stevens narrowboat Felis Catus II web site www.mike-stevens.co.uk Old grammarians never die - they simple parse away >>> <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>> has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > That's true, although I thought the polygonal coin existed for more > than a couple of decades. It depends. It was minted from 1937 to 1967. SignatureJohn Briggs On Wednesday, in article <2urk94F267ltaU1@uni-berlin.de> > > That was a favourite coin of mine too. I believe that it only existed > > in that form for a couple of decades, being preceded by a "silver" > > thruppenny bit similar in size to the current 5p coin. > > That's true, although I thought the polygonal coin existed for more than a > couple of decades. IIRC, the first brass duodecagonal thrupney'bit was minted in 1937. It continued in service until 1971. Its predecessor was the "silver joey"; when I wurra lad, these had been preserved by my grandmother to put in the Christmas puddings. SignatureBrian {Hamilton Kelly} bhk@dsl.co.uk "I don't use Linux. I prefer to use an OS supported by a large multi- national vendor, with a good office suite, excellent network/internet software and decent hardware support." >> IIRC, the first brass duodecagonal thrupney'bit was minted in 1937. It >> continued in service until 1971. > Its predecessor was the "silver joey"; when I wurra lad, these had been > preserved by my grandmother to put in the Christmas puddings. The word "joey" properly refers to a 4d coin which circulated in the 19th century, and was named after a politician who campaigned for it (Joseph Hume). It was only after the 4d coin disappeard from circulation that the term came to be applied to the silver 3d. Matthew Huntbach >>> IIRC, the first brass duodecagonal thrupney'bit was minted in 1937. >>> It continued in service until 1971. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > (Joseph Hume). It was only after the 4d coin disappeard from > circulation that the term came to be applied to the silver 3d. He campaigned for it after he mistakenly (in the dark) tipped a cabbie with a half-sovereign instead of a silver 3d! SignatureJohn Briggs >><http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. > >That was a favourite coin of mine too. I believe that it only existed in >that form for a couple of decades, being preceded by a "silver" >thruppenny bit similar in size to the current 5p coin. Wasn't it the shilling that was similar to the 5p coin? I recall the old silver thruppeny bits being a bit smaller and thinner(?) but I only ever saw one or two well-worn specimens. They must have disappeared from circulation pretty quickly, perhaps because, like many old silver coins, there actually was a silver content and it was worth more than the face value. Never wishing to waste energy on excess vowels, we called the coin a "throopny" bit, BTW, (with the vowel sound of "put"). Some called it "threpny" or "thrupny" but they sounded quaint. We had a fad at school of finding silver coins old enough to contain silver (1920s?) and taking them to a dealer - but we got bored with it after about a week. SignaturePhil C. >>> <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>> has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Wasn't it the shilling that was similar to the 5p coin? Identical - but that was the old (large) 5p, not the current small one. SignatureJohn Briggs >>><http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>>has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Wasn't it the shilling that was similar to the 5p coin? The original 5p coin was the size of a shilling, but since then the size of the silver coins has been reduced. The present 5p is about the same size as the old silver threepenny bit. We had silver threepenny bists in Ireland down to the introduction of the decimal currency. Both irish and British coins were in circulation down to the separation of teh two currencies (sometime in teh 1980s IIRC - and even then you would find british coins in your change in ireland because the coins were the same size. (In Ireland we referred to the coin as thrupence or a thruppeny bit.) There was also tuppence or tuppeny bit. I think this was used in ireland to refer to the 2p coin down to the introduction of the euro. he also had the ha'penny -plural "ha'pennies" (a two-syllable word with the "e" silent where teh first syllable was pronounced "hay"). Regards, Einde O'Callaghan [snip] >The original 5p coin was the size of a shilling, but since then the size >of the silver coins has been reduced. The present 5p is about the same >size as the old silver threepenny bit. [snip] A bit bigger - 5p 18mm, 3d 16mm Don. >>><http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>>has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > >Wasn't it the shilling that was similar to the 5p coin? As I remember it, the shilling was closer in size to the current 10p coin. Of course, up until a decade or so ago, the 5p coin was identical in size to the shilling, being a direct replacement for it (and the old shillings remained in circulation). Then it was replaced by the current, much smaller, coin. A year or two later, the original 10p coin, identical in size to the old two shilling piece (which had also remained in circulation), was replaced by a new design, thus removing the last link to our traditional coinage. > I recall the >old silver thruppeny bits being a bit smaller and thinner(?) No pun intended, presumably? :) They can only have been very slightly smaller than the current 5p, given how tiny that coin is. > but I >only ever saw one or two well-worn specimens. Yes, they were mainly kept for putting in Christmas puddings as I recall. > They must have >disappeared from circulation pretty quickly, By the late 1950s, which is about as far back as I can reliably remember, there seemed to be very few - if any - in general circulation. > perhaps because, like >many old silver coins, there actually was a silver content and it was >worth more than the face value. Never wishing to waste energy on >excess vowels, we called the coin a "throopny" bit, BTW, (with the >vowel sound of "put"). Some called it "threpny" or "thrupny" but they >sounded quaint. I think we said "thrupny" in my neck of the woods. >We had a fad at school of finding silver coins old enough to contain >silver (1920s?) and taking them to a dealer - but we got bored with it >after about a week. That was something that I occasionally thought of doing but could never be bothered. SignatureJohn Hall "Three o'clock is always too late or too early for anything you want to do." Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) >>>> <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> >>>> has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > also remained in circulation), was replaced by a new design, thus > removing the last link to our traditional coinage. Except that the florin wasn't a traditional coin (that was the half-crown). The florin was introduced (in 1848, IIRC) as part of an intended decimalisation: there was a proposal to introduce coins for one-tenth and one-hundredth of a pound. Thanks to opposition, only the one-tenth coin was introduced - and given a suitably 'antique' name. The decimalisation scheme, when it eventually arrived, was the one proposed in the first place! SignatureJohn Briggs >Except that the florin wasn't a traditional coin (that was the half-crown). >The florin was introduced (in 1848, IIRC) as part of an intended >decimalisation: there was a proposal to introduce coins for one-tenth and >one-hundredth of a pound. Thanks to opposition, only the one-tenth coin was >introduced - and given a suitably 'antique' name. The decimalisation >scheme, when it eventually arrived, was the one proposed in the first place! Yes, I recall once reading about this somewhere. However 1848 is traditional enough for me. :) SignatureJohn Hall "Three o'clock is always too late or too early for anything you want to do." Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) On Wednesday, in article <Hdbid.126$pw2.120@newsfe3-win.ntli.net> > Except that the florin wasn't a traditional coin (that was the half-crown). > The florin was introduced (in 1848, IIRC) as part of an intended > decimalisation: there was a proposal to introduce coins for one-tenth and > one-hundredth of a pound. Thanks to opposition, only the one-tenth coin was > introduced - and given a suitably 'antique' name. The decimalisation > scheme, when it eventually arrived, was the one proposed in the first place! Were any coins minted that actually had the words "One Florin" on them? I'm sure all the ones I've seen (some of which were Victorian) had the wording "Two Shillings". So I'd always understood "florin" to be a nickname. AIUI, when this coin was first introduced, the wording on it read "One- Tenth of a Pound" (in the same way that Channel Islands' pennies were "One-Twelfth of a Shilling"). SignatureBrian {Hamilton Kelly} bhk@dsl.co.uk "I don't use Linux. I prefer to use an OS supported by a large multi- national vendor, with a good office suite, excellent network/internet software and decent hardware support." >Were any coins minted that actually had the words "One Florin" on them? >I'm sure all the ones I've seen (some of which were Victorian) had the >wording "Two Shillings". So I'd always understood "florin" to be a >nickname. There are some on eBay at the moment. The one dated 1926 is marked ONE FLORIN. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3402&item=3938321442&rd =1#ebayphotohosting That dated 1963 is marked TWO SHILLINGS http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3402&item=3939406259&rd=1 There is also an Irish Florin which is marked FLOIRIN 2s. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3390&item=3938596816&rd=1 SignaturePeter Duncanson UK (posting from u.c.l.e) > On Wednesday, in article > > Were any coins minted that actually had the words "One Florin" on > them? I'm sure all the ones I've seen (some of which were Victorian) > had the wording "Two Shillings". So I'd always understood "florin" > to be a nickname. Yes, I remember them from childhood. SignatureRay > Were any coins minted that actually had the words "One Florin" on them? > I'm sure all the ones I've seen (some of which were Victorian) had the > wording "Two Shillings". So I'd always understood "florin" to be a > nickname. Yes. My recollection is that the word "florin" appeared on them up to the mid-1920s. In fact I seem to recall that the word "florin" was used amongst us to mean "one of those old two bit bobs that occasionally turns up in your change" rather than a two bib bit in general. Matthew Huntbach >> As I remember it, the shilling was closer in size to the current 10p >> coin. Of course, up until a decade or so ago, the 5p coin was [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >> also remained in circulation), was replaced by a new design, thus >> removing the last link to our traditional coinage. Until the old 5p coin was withdrawn, shillings dating back to 1816 (when new sized silver coins were last introduced) were still legal tender. > Except that the florin wasn't a traditional coin (that was the half-crown). > The florin was introduced (in 1848, IIRC) as part of an intended > decimalisation: there was a proposal to introduce coins for one-tenth and > one-hundredth of a pound. Thanks to opposition, only the one-tenth coin was > introduced - and given a suitably 'antique' name. The decimalisation > scheme, when it eventually arrived, was the one proposed in the first place! Yes, it was 1848, so until the old 10p coins were withdrawn, coins dating back to 1848 were still legal tender (I recall the withdrawal being rather more than a year or two after the withdrawal of the old 5p, it was three or four - time had to be given for the old 5p coins to disappear since the new 10p coins were so similar in size). There was also opposition to the florin because the first version of the coin omitted the words "Dei Gratia" and hence came to be called the "Godless florin". It's sometimes said that "florin" was the "nickname" for the two bob bit, but that is false. It was the formal name for the coin which still appeared on it as late as the 1920s. I don't think in practice anyone actually called it that. In those days one-hundredth of a pound was a substantial amount of money (even in 1971 it was so much that we had the decimal halfpenny). The original scheme was that the florin would be the main unit of currency divided into a hundred itself. One hundredth of a florin was very nearly a quarter of a farthing. Quarter farthing coins were minted, although it was one of those denomination only intended for the colonies. Matthew Huntbach Matthew Huntbach typed thus: > There was also opposition to the florin because the first version of > the coin omitted the words "Dei Gratia" and hence came to be called the > "Godless florin". It's sometimes said that "florin" was the "nickname" > for the two bob bit, but that is false. It was the formal name for the > coin which still appeared on it as late as the 1920s. I don't think in > practice anyone actually called it that. Yep, we did, up to the 70s. SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. > Matthew Huntbach typed thus: >> There was also opposition to the florin because the first version of >> the coin omitted the words "Dei Gratia" and hence came to be called the >> "Godless florin". It's sometimes said that "florin" was the "nickname" >> for the two bob bit, but that is false. It was the formal name for the >> coin which still appeared on it as late as the 1920s. I don't think in >> practice anyone actually called it that. > Yep, we did, up to the 70s. I don't recall the word "florin" being used for the coin in the years before decimalization (which I am just about old enough to remember). My recollection was that it was called a "two bob bit". Matthew Huntbach >> Matthew Huntbach typed thus: > [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > before decimalization (which I am just about old enough to remember). > My recollection was that it was called a "two bob bit". Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. SignatureLaura (emulate St. George for email) >> I don't recall the word "florin" being used for the coin in the years >> before decimalization (which I am just about old enough to remember). >> My recollection was that it was called a "two bob bit". > >Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as >a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. We called it a two-bob bit. Some say that the expression "number two" is from Cockney rhyming slang. I occasionally heard a half-crown referred to as "two and a kick". According to Partridge, "kick" for a sixpence dates back to ca 1700. SignaturePhil C. >>> I don't recall the word "florin" being used for the coin in the years >>> before decimalization (which I am just about old enough to remember). >>> My recollection was that it was called a "two bob bit". >> Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as >> a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. > We called it a two-bob bit. Some say that the expression "number two" > is from Cockney rhyming slang. "Two bob" for the amount of money, sure, but would that be the term used for the actual coin? Could you have said "a two bob" to mean a coin of that value? Admittedly, it was "a sixpence" and never "a sixpenny bit". Matthew Huntbach Laura F Spira typed thus: > >> Matthew Huntbach typed thus: > > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as > a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. I'm fairly certain we referred to the 50p coin as a Ten Bob Bit when it was first introduced. SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. >The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as a "bit" in my >lifetime was the thruppenny one. That's my recollection too. SignatureJohn Hall You can divide people into two categories: those who divide people into two categories and those who don't On Friday, in article <418B8438.9050007@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> > Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred to as > a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. "Sixpenny bit"? (Vs "sixpence", which is a monetary sum and not necessarily indicative of its being in a single coin.) SignatureBrian {Hamilton Kelly} bhk@dsl.co.uk "I don't use Linux. I prefer to use an OS supported by a large multi- national vendor, with a good office suite, excellent network/internet software and decent hardware support." >On Friday, in article > <418B8438.9050007@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >"Sixpenny bit"? (Vs "sixpence", which is a monetary sum and not >necessarily indicative of its being in a single coin.) IIRC, it was always a "sixpenny piece" or a "tanner". SignatureJohn Hall "Hard work often pays off after time, but laziness always pays off now." Anon > Just "two bob". The only coin I have ever heard regularly referred > to as a "bit" in my lifetime was the thruppenny one. There is an Irish jig from the 19th century called "The Tenpenny Bit". I've no idea what the story behind it is. ========> Email to "j-c" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce <======== Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760 <http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html> food intolerance data & recipes, Mac logic fonts, Scots traditional music files and CD-ROMs of Scottish music. > On Friday, in article > <418B8438.9050007@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > "Sixpenny bit"? (Vs "sixpence", which is a monetary sum and not > necessarily indicative of its being in a single coin.) Never! A tanner, maybe, but usually sixpence. Perhaps these variations are regional as well as temporal? I grew up in London. SignatureLaura (emulate St. George for email) >> On Friday, in article >> <418B8438.9050007@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Never! A tanner, maybe, but usually sixpence. And what about 'half a sixpence' as in the book, the play, the song? The half a sixpence being a lover's token JM >In those days one-hundredth of a pound was a substantial amount of money >(even in 1971 it was so much that we had the decimal halfpenny). The >original scheme was that the florin would be the main unit of currency >divided into a hundred itself. One hundredth of a florin was very nearly >a quarter of a farthing. Quarter farthing coins were minted, although it >was one of those denomination only intended for the colonies. It's amazing how many different denominations have been minted at one time or another. e.g - http://www.24carat.co.uk/index.html (Information/FAQ/British coin denominations). I suppose they had their reasons. No mention of the dandiprat in that list, though - an alternative name for the threehalfpence. The naming of coins seems to have become a lost art. It's interesting how well the word "groat" has survived the coin's demise. Perhaps because it's a boon to crossword compilers and Scrabble players. SignaturePhil C. >Wasn't it the shilling that was similar to the 5p coin? I recall the >old silver thruppeny bits being a bit smaller and thinner(?) but I [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >vowel sound of "put"). Some called it "threpny" or "thrupny" but they >sounded quaint. In the North East it was quite common to call it "threpence", or a "threpny bit". SignatureFrank Erskine OETKBC, MJBC > At 18:44:10 on Tue, 2 Nov 2004, John Hall <nospam_nov03@jhall.co.uk> > wrote in <Hezs3IE6V9hBFwGL@jhall.demon.co.uk>: [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > <http://www.coinage-sales.co.uk/grafix/genericoins/threepenny100.png> > has a picture of a pre-1971 thruppenny bit. Thrup nibbet, shirley? SignatureJohn Briggs At 20:57:13 on Tue, 2 Nov 2004, John Briggs <john.briggs4@ntlworld.com> wrote in <JwShd.861$bo3.287@newsfe3-gui.ntli.net>: >> Prior to decimalisation, there was a delightful coin known as a >> "thruppenny bit" (corruption of "threepenny") which was worth 3d, or >> three old pence. The value was known as "thruppence" (from "three >> pence"). There is no 3p coin any longer, so both "thrupenny" and >> "thruppence" have died out. >Thrup nibbet, shirley? :-) I don't remember any other coin being called a bit, by the way. The only one that sounds even half-right would be a two-bob bit, and that was of course a florin. Perhaps that's the problem - that all the old coins did have their own unique names, and none of the new ones do. (Apart from the pound coin, of course - the Thatcher. Cheap, brassy and thinks it's a sovereign.) It is perfectly possible for coins, notes and amounts to acquire names even in latter days; look how quickly UKP2000 became known as an Archer. SignatureMolly Mockford I think I've been too long on my own, but the little green goblin that lives under the sink says I'm OK - and he's never wrong, so I must be! (My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) > At 20:57:13 on Tue, 2 Nov 2004, John Briggs > <john.briggs4@ntlworld.com> wrote in [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > for coins, notes and amounts to acquire names even in latter days; look > how quickly UKP2000 became known as an Archer. By an association of ideas, why was the Dutch Florin called a Guilder? (Or vice versa, of course.) SignatureJohn Briggs > At 18:44:10 on Tue, 2 Nov 2004, John Hall <nospam_nov03@jhall.co.uk> > wrote in <Hezs3IE6V9hBFwGL@jhall.demon.co.uk>: > >>>I'm not a native speaker, can anyone tell me the differences between >>> penny, pees, pences ?? > "thruppence" have died out. I gave mine to the British Museum >> between a singular and a plural any more? > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > It seems to me that most people use "pees" for the plural and "penny" > for the singular ? is it correct ? One penny, two pence. A lot of people say: 1p (one pee), 2p (two pee), 10p (ten pee) etc. "Pees" or "pences" are not used by educated people. Just like the "p" version this may change, in time. SignatureRay > We've never really recovered from decimalisation of the currency, have > we? But I thought I'd heard all the ghastly permutations such as "five [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > and the actors who voiced it. Can nobody distinguish between a singular > and a plural any more? Hang on one moment, I've just heard this advert. It is voiced by Tom Baker, who is appearing to copy his eccentric narrator character from the TV comedy show "Little Britain". It is the sort of tongue-in-cheek thing this character would say and is not meant to be taken seriously. |
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