pound sterling
/paʊnd ˈstɜː(ɹ).lɪŋ/ noun
Forms pounds sterling GBP
Synonyms
pound[Appendix:Glossary quid nicker sov British pound pound British pound sterling
Etymology
The basic unit of currency in medieval England was the silver penny or sterling, weighing ¹⁄₂₄₀ of a tower pound. 240 of these coins made a "pound of sterlings". This term (shortened to "pound sterling" in later usage) continued to be used for a sum of 240 pence even after the sterling had ceased to circulate. The modern pound sterling is equivalent to 100 new pence.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “pound sterling”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details