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Glite Dictionary
Irish punt

Irish punt

8.7
A unit of money used in Ireland before the euro
  • noun
  • Literature
translation icon : punt irlandés
  • In the 1990s, a cup of coffee cost around 2 Irish punts.

Examples

  • He exchanged his old Irish punts for euros at the bank in Dublin.

  • Collectors sometimes seek out rare Irish punt notes and coins at auctions.

  • Before Ireland adopted the euro, people used the Irish punt for all financial transactions.

  • The Irish punt was replaced by the euro in 2002.

  • Many people still remember the Irish punt fondly.

  • Many travelers to Ireland remember exchanging their dollars for Irish punts before the euro was adopted.

  • After the introduction of the euro, the Irish punt ceased to be used as a currency.

Synonyms

punt
vsIrish punt
  • Literature
1 9.8

Old Irish money worth 100 pence, replaced by the euro in 2002

has identical meaning but differs only in wording or label
Irish pound
vsIrish punt
  • Literature
1 6.4

Former money used in Ireland before the euro

is the same monetary unit but uses a different name
Irish monetary unit
vsIrish punt
  • Literature
7.8

Old currency used in Ireland before the euro

is the particular unit equal to 100 pence replaced in 2002

Surface Forms

Irish punt singular
Irish punts plural

Morphology

Irish + punt

The meaning 'the former currency of Ireland' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'Irish' (pertaining to Ireland) with 'punt' (a currency unit). This country-adjective + currency-noun composition is a common and predictable pattern cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Irish punt gets its name from the Irish word punt, which simply means 'pound' (the unit of money). It was Ireland's own 'pound' before the country changed to the euro in 2002, so today Irish punt refers to that old Irish money.