pound
pound [pound pounds pounded pounding] noun, verb BrE [paʊnd] NAmE [paʊnd]
noun
MONEY
1. countable (also technical ˌpound ˈsterling) (symb. £)the unit of money in the UK, worth 100 pence
•a ten-pound note
•a pound coin
• I've spent £25 on food today.
• What would you do if you won a million pounds?
•Total losses were estimated at over three million pounds.
see also ↑sterling
2. countable the unit of money of several other countries
3. the poundsingular (finance)the value of the British pound compared with the value of the money of other countries
•the strength/weakness of the pound (against other currencies)
•The pound closed slightly down at $1.534.
•The pound fell sharply to a record low against the yen.
•a run on the pound
WEIGHT
4. countable (abbr.lb)a unit for measuring weight, equal to 0.454 of a kilogram
•half a pound of butter
• They cost two dollars a pound.
• I've lost six and a half pounds since I started my diet.
FOR CARS
5. countable a place where vehicles that have been parked illegally are kept until their owners pay to get them back
FOR DOGS
6. countable a place where dogs that have been found in the street without their owners are kept until their owners claim them
more at in for a penny, in for a pound at ↑penny, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure at ↑prevention
Word Origin:
n. senses 1 to 4 Old English pund Germanic Dutch pond German Pfund Latin (libra) pondo v. Old English pūnian Dutch puin Low German pün ‘(building) rubbish’ n. senses 5 to 6 late Middle English
Culture:
money
The US dollar is made up of 100 cents. The ↑Department of the Treasury prints bills (= paper money) in various denominations (= values): $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100. US bills are all the same size, whatever their value, and measure about 2×6 inches/6.5×15.5 centimetres. All are green and are sometimes called greenbacks. On the front, each has a picture of a famous American. The dollar bill, for instance, shows George ↑Washington, the first US president. An informal name for dollars is bucks, because in the early period of US history people traded the skins of bucks (= deer) and prices would sometimes be given as a number of buckskins. Buck refers to the dollar itself, and not to the bill. So although you can say ‘He earns 500 bucks a week’, you have to say ‘If I give you four quarters could you give me a dollar bill?’
The Treasury also makes US coins: pennies which are worth.01 of a dollar, nickels (.05), dimes (.10) and quarters (.25). There are also half dollars (.50) and silver dollars but these are not often seen. Pennies have a dark brown colour; all the other coins have a silver appearance.
When you write an amount in figures the dollar sign ($) goes to the left of the amount and a decimal point (.) is placed between the dollars and the cents (= hundredths of a dollar). If the amount is less than one dollar, the cent sign (¢) is put after the numbers. So you write $5, $5.62 and 62¢.
Britain’s currency is the pound sterling, written as £ before a figure. A pound consists of 100 pence, written as p with figures. Pound coins are round and gold-coloured. They have the Queen’s head on one side and one of four designs, English, Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish, on the other. The £2 coin is silver-coloured with a gold edge. Coins of lower value are the silver-coloured 50p, 20p, 10p and 5p pieces, and the copper-coloured 2p and 1p pieces. All are round, except for the 50p and 20p pieces which have seven curved sides. Coins are made at the ↑Royal Mint. Paper notes (not bills), which have the Queen’s head on one side and a famous person, e.g. Charles Dickens, on the other, are worth £5, £10, £20 or £50.
A pound is informally called a quid, a £5 note is a fiver, a £10 note is a tenner. Scottish banknotes have their own designs. They can be used anywhere in Britain, though shops can legally refuse to accept them. To prevent people forging (= making their own) paper money, designs are complicated and difficult to copy. To check that a note is genuine, a shop assistant may hold it up to the light to see if it has a narrow silver thread running through it.
The decimal system now in use in Britain replaced the old pounds, shilling and pence, or LSD system in 1971. Formerly British money was in pounds, shillings and pence. There were 12 pence or pennies in a shilling, and 20 shillings in a pound. The old coins included the farthing (= a quarter of a penny) and the half-crown (= two shillings and sixpence). There were notes for 10 shillings, £1 and £5.
Gold guinea coins were used in the 18th century and were worth 21 shillings. Until 1971 prices were often set in guineas instead of pounds for luxury items, such as antiques and jewellery, for the fees of doctors, lawyers, etc, and at auctions, though the guinea coin had long since gone out of circulation. Some racehorses are still auctioned in guineas.
On 1 January 1999 the ↑euro system was introduced in 11 countries of the ↑European Union. Britain chose not to be part of this first group and no date was fixed for Britain to start using the euro. However, many British businesses have euro bank accounts so as to be able to pay for goods and be paid in euros and many shops in Britain accept payment in euros.
Idiom: ↑your pound of flesh
Derived: ↑pound something out
verb
HIT
1. intransitive, transitive to hit sth/sb hard many times, especially in a way that makes a lot of noise
Syn: ↑hammer
•~ at/against/on sth Heavy rain pounded on the roof.
•All she could hear was the sound of waves pounding against the cliffs.
•Someone was pounding at the door.
•~ away (at/against/on sth) The factory's machinery pounded away day and night.
•~ sb/sth (with sth) She pounded him with her fists.
WALK NOISILY
2. intransitive + adv./prep. to move with noisy steps
•She pounded along the corridor after him.
OF HEART/BLOOD
3. intransitive to beat quickly and loudly
•Her heart was pounding with excitement.
•The blood was pounding (= making a beating noise) in his ears.
•Her head began to pound.
•a pounding headache
BREAK INTO PIECES
4. transitive ~ sth (to/into sth) to hit sth many times in order to break it into smaller pieces
•The seeds were pounded to a fine powder.
ATTACK WITH BOMBS
5. transitive ~ sth to attack an area with a large number of bombs over a period of time
•The area is still being pounded by rebel guns.
OF MUSIC
6. intransitive ~ (out) to be played loudly
•Rock music was pounding out from the jukebox.
Verb forms: 
Word Origin:
n. senses 1 to 4 Old English pund Germanic Dutch pond German Pfund Latin (libra) pondo v. Old English pūnian Dutch puin Low German pün ‘(building) rubbish’ n. senses 5 to 6 late Middle English
Synonyms:
beat
batter • pound • lash • hammer
These words all mean to hit sb/sth many times, especially hard.
beat • to hit sb/sth a lot of times, especially very hard: ▪ Someone was beating at the door. ◇ ▪ A young man was found beaten to death last night. ◇ ▪ At that time, children were often beaten for quite minor offences ▪ (= as a punishment) ▪.
batter • to hit sb/sth hard a lot of times, especially in way that causes serious damage: ▪ He had been badly battered around the head and face. ◇ ▪ Severe winds have been battering the coast.
pound • to hit sb/sth hard a lot of times, especially in a way that makes a lot of noise: ▪ Heavy rain pounded on the roof.
lash • to hit sb/sth with a lot of force: ▪ The rain lashed at the window.
The subject of lash is often rain, wind, hail, sea or waves.
hammer • to hit sb/sth hard a lot of times, in a way that is noisy or violent: ▪ He hammered the door with his fists.
pound or hammer?
There is not much difference in meaning between these two, but to pound is sometimes a steadier action. To hammer can be more violent and it is often used figuratively.
to beat/batter/pound/lash/hammer sb/sth with sth
to beat/batter/pound/lash/hammer against sth
to beat/batter/pound/hammer on sth
to beat/batter/hammer sth down
the rain/wind/sea beats/batters/pounds/lashes (at) sth
Example Bank:
•His heart began to pound against his ribs.
•She could hear music pounding away in the room below.
•She pounded the desk with her fist.
•Someone was pounding on the door.
•A group of men on horseback came pounding across the field.
•Her heart was pounding with fear.
•I could hear the sound of pounding footsteps.
•The blood was pounding in his ears.
•The machines pounded away day and night.
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