shilling
shil·ling/ˈʃɪlɪŋ/noun, verb
shilling is spelled S-H-I-L-L-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables (shil·ling). It appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 23,253rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, shilling means “A coin formerly used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Malta, Australia, New Zealand and many other Commonwealth countries worth twelve old pence, or…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of shilling is shillings.
How many letters and syllables are in shilling?
| Letters | 8: S-H-I-L-L-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: shil·ling |
| In writing | 1.5 times per million words; the 23,253rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is shilling?
Shilling appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 23,253rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shilling?
- US /ˈʃɪlɪŋ/
Shilling has 2 syllables, split shil·ling in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-shilling.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-shilling.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with shilling
Also written: schilling, skilling.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of shilling
- shillings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shilling mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A coin formerly used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Malta, Australia, New Zealand and many other Commonwealth countries worth twelve old pence, or one twentieth of a pound sterling.
- 2
The currency of Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania and Uganda.
- 3
USA currency in the United States, differing in value between states.
- 4
USThe Spanish real, formerly having the value of one eighth of a dollar.
- 5
Alternative form of schilling, a coin formerly used in Germany and German states, worth twelve pfennig.
- 6
Alternative form of skilling, a coin formerly used in Denmark, Norway or Sweden, worth twelve penning.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of shill
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate shilling?
Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of shilling: Sh., s..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shilling in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense former coin:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shilling come from?
From Middle English schilling, shilling, from Old English sċilling, from Proto-West Germanic *skilling, from Proto-Germanic *skillingaz, equivalent to skill + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).