Where does “threepence” come from?
Threepence derives from English three and English penny, from Old English þrī and Old English penning, ultimately from Proto-Germanic panningaz and Proto-Indo-European tréyes.
threepence (English): The amount of money equal to that of three pence;...
Definitions
- The amount of money equal to that of three pence;...
Ancestry of “threepence”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | three | A numerical value after two and before four.... |
| 2 | Middle English | thre | three |
| 3 | Old English | þrī | — |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | þrīʀ | three |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | þrīz | three |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | *tréyes | — |