Standard Lemma guide

pfennig

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • UK: /ˈ(p)fɛn.ɪɡ/
  • CMU ARPABET: F EH1 N IH0 G Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

One hundredth of the former German mark (Deutsche Mark).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical

Topics: hobbies, lifestyle, numismatics

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

100 pfennigs formerly equaled 1 Deutsche Mark in Germany

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: German monetary unit

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Pre-Greekder.? Ancient Greek πατάνη (patánē)bor. Latin patina Latin panna? Latin pannus? Proto-Indo-European *-n̥kwo-der.? Proto-Indo-European *-nós Proto-Indo-European *-iHnos Proto-Germanic *-īnaz Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz ? Proto-Germanic *-ingaz Proto-Germanic *panningaz Proto-West Germanic *panning Old High German pfending Middle High German pfennic German Pfennig English pfennig From German Pfennig. Doublet of penny and fening.

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Basaa: fɛnîk — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Bulgarian: пфе́ниг (pfénig) — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Esperanto: pfenigo — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Finnish: pfennig — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • German: Pfennig — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Ido: pfennig — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Japanese: ペニヒ (penihi) — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Macedonian: фенинг (fening) — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Polish: fenig — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Russian: пфе́нниг (pfénnig) — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark
  • Volapük: fenig — a hundredth of a Deutsche Mark