Peter's pence

noun

plural in form but singular in construction
1
: an annual tribute of a penny formerly paid by each householder in England to the papal see
2
: a voluntary annual contribution made by Roman Catholics to the pope

Word History

Etymology

Middle English; from the tradition that St. Peter founded the papal see

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Peter's pence was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near Peter's pence

Peter's fish

Peter's pence

peter boat

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Peter's pence.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Peter%27s%20pence. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

9 Superb Owl Words

15 Words That Used to Mean Something Different
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
little chihuahua dressing like a turkey for thanksgiving
Is That Gratitude or Attitude? A Thanksgiving Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...