Slangora

elevenpence

Elevenpence is an archaic British English term for the sum of eleven old pennies — a denomination that existed under the pre-decimal currency system where twelve pennies made one shilling.

ɪˈlɛvənpənsDocumented since 950shistorical40 viewsLast reviewed Jun 29, 2026+ Add a definition
🇬🇧 British & Irish slang
2 definitions
Community

Etymology timeline

Born ~950 · no dated citations yet
950BornToday, 2026

Definitions

UK
#1·Apr 28, 2026UK

Elevenpence is an archaic British English term for the sum of eleven old pennies — a denomination that existed under the pre-decimal currency system where twelve pennies made one shilling. The term is now entirely obsolete following the UK's decimalisation of currency in 1971. It might appear in historical literature, period drama, or academic discussions of pre-decimal British money. Outside of these contexts, it has no functional use in modern speech. Its survival is purely historical.

The pamphlet sold for elevenpence at the door, which was considered reasonable even for the time.
Origin: Compound of 'eleven' + 'pence' (plural of penny), following standard pre-decimal British currency naming conventions. 'Pence' derives from Old English 'pening', related to German 'Pfennig'. Editorial expansion authored on Slangora.
Was this helpful?

Comments

UK
#2·Apr 27, 2026UK

(UK, obsolete) the value of eleven old pennies.

Was this helpful?

Comments

Used in

UK

Have a better definition?

Add your own interpretation of "elevenpence".

Add definition

🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang

UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.

See all British & Irish slang slang on Slangora.

Tags

Other words near "elevenpence" (E)

Browse all slang words starting with E.

Related terms

People also read

Semantically related