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Glite Dictionary
Libyan dirham

Libyan dirham

8.3
A Libyan coin or note worth one hundredth of a dinar
  • noun
translation icon : dirham libio
  • One Libyan dirham is worth one hundredth of a Libyan dinar.

Examples

  • The cashier handed me twenty Libyan dirhams in change after my purchase.

  • Prices for small items are often given in Libyan dirhams rather than dinars.

  • I exchanged my dollars for Libyan dirhams.

  • The price of the book is 100 Libyan dirhams.

  • The cashier handed me twenty Libyan dirhams in change after my purchase.

  • Prices for small items are often given in Libyan dirhams rather than dinars.

  • The price of the book is 100 Libyan dirhams.

Surface Forms

Libyan dirham singular
Libyan dirhams plural

Morphology

Libyan + dirham

The phrase combines the adjective 'Libyan' (connected with Libya) and 'dirham' (a currency unit), so its meaning 'the currency unit of Libya' is directly derivable from the parts. This nationality + currency composition is a common, cross-linguistic naming pattern and should be immediately comprehensible to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Libyan dirham may come from the old Greek word 'drachma', a name for a small silver coin, which became the Arabic word dirham for a coin. That's why a Libyan dirham today is the small money unit, 'one hundredth of a dinar', used for small prices.