groat

[ groht ]

/ groʊt /

a silver coin of England, equal to four pennies, issued from 1279 to 1662.

Origin of groat

1325–75; Middle English groot < Middle Dutch groot large, name of a large coin; see great

grizzly, grizzly bear, gro., groan, groaner, groat, groats, grocer, groceries, grocery, groceryman

A pleasant fancy, forsooth, for a fellow who has not a groat in his pocket to look for a yoke-mate above the clouds.

Wit and Wisdom of Don Quixote |Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
The groat twirled in the air and came down clink upon the thwart.

Master Skylark |John Bennett
I have horses, money, and owe nobody a groat; at any rate, nothing but p. 265what I could pay to-morrow.

The Romany Rye |George Borrow
I should e'en go hang myself now if I were worth a halter; but who will spend a groat on't, when he may be hanged at free cost?

A Select Collection of Old English Plays, Volume 12 (of 15) |Robert Dodsley

The tap-room of a famed public-house, near the head of Groat market.

The Newcastle Song Book |Various

groat

/ (ɡrəʊt) /

an English silver coin worth four pennies, taken out of circulation in the 17th century

C14: from Middle Dutch groot, from Middle Low German gros, from Medieval Latin ( denarius) grossus thick (coin); see groschen