An obsolete British slang term for a farthing, the smallest denomination of British pre-decimal currency — worth one quarter of a penny. The word is a diminutive formation, reinforcing the coin's negligible value. It appears in 18th and 19th-century slang dictionaries and literary works depicting working-class or criminal slang, where coins of every denomination had their own vocabulary. The farthing itself was withdrawn from circulation in 1960, taking most of its slang synonyms with it.
He rummaged in his pocket and came up with nothing but a quartereen and a bit of tobacco fluff.
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(UK, obsolete, slang) A farthing.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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