Meaning
7 senses(countable)An English silver penny first introduced by the Normans.
(broadly, countable)A penny issued in other countries, such as Scotland.
(broadly, uncountable)The currency of the United Kingdom, also called the pound sterling
сте́рлингstérling, фунтfunt
British money; especially the pound sterling as the basic monetary unit of the UK
(broadly, historical, uncountable)Former British gold or silver coinage of a standard fineness (0.91666 for gold and 0.925 for silver).
(broadly, countable, obsolete)Synonym of pennyweight (“a unit of mass equal to 24 grains, or ¹⁄₂₀ of a troy ounce”)
(broadly, obsolete, uncountable)Money generally.
(broadly, obsolete, uncountable)The standard degree of fineness.
Examples
7 sentencesThis is genuine sterling silver dinnerware.
I found a sterling silver spoon.
This watch is sterling silver.
Tom is doing sterling work.
Is this sterling silver?
Це чисте срібло?
ruЭто чистое серебро?
deIst das Sterlingsilber?
Translations
6 languagesBy meaning 1
Origin
From Middle English sterling, possibly from Old English *steorling, from steorra (“star”)From Middle English sterling, possibly from Old English *steorling, from steorra (“star”) and -ling, in reference to the stars that appeared on certain English pennies. Alternatively, the first element may be *stēre, meaning “strong” or “stout” (compare the etymology of solidus).
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Forms
plural: sterlingsSynonyms
1 synonymsWord family
2 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable