1 definition by The Bay Area Professor

bit

In the Western States after the War with Mexico U.S. coins were not commonly circulated; however the peso ( Mexican, Spanish) was common. The exchange rate (circa 1849) was one peso to one dollar. To convert small change the peso was cut in eighths. One eighth was one bit of a peso, or 12 and one half cents. Two bits was 25 cents and so on. The expression two bits or four bits or six bits is still used in this manner in the Far West, especially in Northern California.

"How much is a black coffee"? "Six bits". "Why are you using that crappy two bit pen"?

by The Bay Area Professor April 10, 2012