sixpence

Old British coin

Sixpence was a British coin worth six pennies, or half a shilling—a small but useful sum for centuries.

The coin was discontinued in 1980 but survives in expressions and traditions: the nursery rhyme "Sing a Song of Sixpence," or the custom of placing a sixpence in a bride's shoe for luck.

He hadn't a sixpence to his name.

coin

shilling

Former British monetary unit

crown · half-crown · guinea · sovereign · silver · mint · denomination · obverse · reverse · numismatics

British

sterling

Pure silver alloy

  • poundWeight, strike, or kennel
  • bobShort vertical movement
  • quidBritish pound, informally

Britain · England · Victorian · Edwardian · Elizabethan · Tudor · monarchy · exchequer · pre-decimal · old money

nurseryrhyme

blackbird

Dark-plumaged thrush species

  • pieCrust-enclosed baked dish
  • kingMale crowned ruler
  • queenMost powerful chess piece

maid · garden · pocket · sing · baked · rhyme · verse · childhood · Mother Goose

wedding

shoe

Covering for feet

  • brideWoman getting married
  • luckChance affecting outcomes
  • traditionCustom passed through generations

something old · trousseau · blessing · custom · token · keepsake · ceremony · good fortune · dowry

nostalgia

yesteryear

Time not long past

memories · sentimental · heirloom · reminisce · retro · old-fashioned · quaint · heritage · souvenir · wistful

Categories
Opposites
material worth/significance

sixpencefortune

Wealth or destiny

wealth · riches · king's ransom · nothing · worthlessness

monetary value within historical British currency

sixpencepound

Weight, strike, or kennel

sovereign · guinea · crown · half-crown · farthing

Family

sixpences, sixpenny

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G