threepence

[ thrip-uhns, threp-, thruhp-; three-pens ]

/ ˈθrɪp əns, ˈθrɛp-, ˈθrʌp-; ˈθriˌpɛns /

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noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)British. a sum of three pennies.

a former cupronickel coin of the United Kingdom, a quarter of a shilling, equal to three pennies: use phased out after decimalization in 1971.

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Origin of threepence

First recorded in 1580–90; three + pence

I take cigar-smoking as an expense of, say, half-a-crown a-day, and pipe-smoking at threepence.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
A post in France is six miles, and one shilling and threepence is charged for each horse, and sevenpence for the driver.
Travels through the South of France and the Interior of Provinces of Provence and Languedoc in the Years 1807 and 1808|Lt-Col. Pinkney
Mutton seldom exceeds threepence English money per pound, and beef is usually somewhat cheaper.
Travels through the South of France and the Interior of Provinces of Provence and Languedoc in the Years 1807 and 1808|Lt-Col. Pinkney
It was minted in the Bran Tubs from which, paying your threepence, you drew forth a penny toy.
Mushroom Town|Oliver Onions

By this labor he earns, every day, threepence for the state, and a halfpenny for himself!
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. VII, December 1850, Vol. II|Various