four bits

American  

noun

Slang.

1. 50 cents.

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Other Word Forms

• four-bit adjective

Etymology

Origin of four bits

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40

Example Sentences

League bean-counter, penciling out the unsportsmanlike-conduct tally: “Two bits, four bits, six bits … $12,875.”

From Seattle Times

And those four bits of news were just recently.

From The Verge

His “Two bits, four bits, six bits a dollar … all for the Gators, stand up and holler!” routine took hold, and he quickly became a well-known figure at games.

From Washington Times

Four bits of a broken doll: one blue eye and half an eyebrow, a bit with a curl of black hair attached, an ear, and a hand with perfect tiny fingernails;

From Literature

QLC is the obvious next step, allowing even greater storage capacity by dividing each cell into 16 charge levels for four bits of data in each cell.

From The Verge