pound sterling

American  

noun

1. pound.

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pound sterling British  

noun

1. the official name for the standard monetary unit of the United Kingdom See pound 3

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Etymology

Origin of pound sterling

First recorded in 1625–35

Example Sentences

Treasury Secretary Bessent, 63, worked with Druckenmiller at SFM from 1991 to 2000, which included a particularly noteworthy period in 1992 when the firm shorted the pound sterling.

From Barron's • Feb. 2, 2026

They would pay each other using traditional currency, like the pound sterling or US dollar.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2025

But the fact is, like the 19th-century system in which the British pound sterling was pegged at a fixed rate to gold, such arrangements only work until they cease to work.

From Salon • Dec. 13, 2022

That strategy, fleshed out by Mr. Kwarteng on Sept. 23, sent the pound sterling plunging and raised borrowing costs for the government, a development that rippled through into the domestic housing loan market.

From New York Times • Oct. 15, 2022

“Boys, that ain’t here nor there. I’ll take an even pound sterling, in the light of circumstance. Look’ee, sirs, fine as Hepplewhite and Hay.”

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson