groat
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groat¹
- /ɡɹoʊt/ US
- /ɡɹəʊt/ UK
- /ɡɹɔːt/ obsolete
Rhymes with -əʊt
Where it comes from
From Middle English grot, from Old English grot, from Proto-West Germanic *grot, from Proto-Germanic *grutą, related to *greutą. More at grit, grout.
noun groats
- Hulled grain, chiefly hulled oats.
groat²
- /ɡɹoʊt/ US
- /ɡɹəʊt/ UK
- /ɡɹɔːt/ obsolete
Rhymes with -əʊt
Where it comes from
Possibly from Middle Dutch groot, the Old French gros Tournois (“a coin of Tours”), gros being from Medieval Latin denarius grossus (“large coin”). Related to German Groschen.
noun groats
- Any of various old coins of England and Scotland. The Widdow that hath but a pan of braſſe, And ſcarſe a houſe to hide her head, Sometimes no penny to buy her bread, Muſt pay her Landlord many a groat, Or twil be puld out of her throat:
- Any unit of currency worth four pence.
-
A historical English coin representing such a unit: a silver coin worth four English pennies, still minted as one of the set of Maundy coins.
The needy groom, that never finger'd groat,
Would make a miracle of thus much coin …
Similar: fourpence
- A proverbial small sum; a whit or jot.
Groat³
Where it comes from
* As a Scottish surname, nickname from Old Norse grautr (“porridge”). Compare Grout.
* Also as a Scottish surname, variant of Grote.
* As a German, Dutch and Danish surname, variant of Groth, Groot, Grott, and Grad.
proper noun Groats
- A surname.
Translations
Talk about this word "groat." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/groat. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. groat. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/groat "groat." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/groat.Cite this
@misc{groat_2026,
title = {groat},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/groat},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
