penny-farthing

[ pen-ee-fahr-thing ]

nounBritish.
  1. a high bicycle of an early type, with one large wheel in front and one small wheel behind.

Origin of penny-farthing

1
From a comparison of the size difference between the two bicycle wheels to the size difference between an old British penny and a farthing

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British Dictionary definitions for penny-farthing

penny-farthing

noun
  1. British an early type of bicycle with a large front wheel and a small rear wheel, the pedals being attached to the front wheel: US name: ordinary

Origin of penny-farthing

1
C20: so called because of the similarity between the relative sizes of the wheels and the relative sizes of the (old) penny and farthing coins

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012