lire
n.n. a word used in some parts of England to describe a small amount of money. It is a very old word that people do not use much anymore.
n. a small sum of money, typically used in the dialects of the East Riding of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. Archaic in modern standard English.
The old man spent his lire on a small loaf of bread and a pint of ale.
From Middle English lire, lyre, from Old English līra (“any fleshy part of the body, muscle, calf of the leg”), from Proto-Germanic ligwizô, lihwizô (“thigh, groin”), from Proto-Indo-European lekʷs-, lewks- (“groin”). Cognate with Dutch lies (“groin”), Swedish lår (“thigh”).
From Middle English lire, lyre, from Old Norse hlýr (“cheeks”, plural). Compare Middle English lere, from Old English hlēor (“cheek, countenance, complexion”). More at leer.
From Old Norse líri. Cognate with Norwegian lira.
From Italian lire.