Meaning & use
sov
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableinformal
an informal word for a sovereign, a British gold coin used in the past.
Grammar: Countable: one sov, two sovs. It is mainly used in British English and often in historical contexts.
Patterns
- a gold sov
- a few sovs
- worth a sov
He kept an old gold sov in a drawer.
In those days, a sov could buy a lot more than it can now.
The collector paid a high price for a rare sov.
nouncountableinformalrare
a short informal way of saying 'sovereign', meaning a king, queen, or other ruler.
Grammar: Countable, but this use is rare and mostly appears in political or historical writing.
Patterns
- the sov
- a foreign sov
The article referred to the monarch simply as 'the sov'.
Some writers use 'sov' for a sovereign ruler, but it can confuse readers.
Word forms
| plural | sovs |
|---|
Common combinations
- gold sov
- The museum displayed a gold sov from the 1800s.
- a few sovs
- He sold a few sovs to pay for the trip.
- worth a sov
- The old ring was worth a sov at most.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sovereign
- This is the full, standard word for the coin or ruler; 'sov' is just a short informal form.
- coin
- This is the general word for money made of metal; 'sov' names one specific old British coin.
Word family
- sovereign noun
- A king, queen, or ruler; also the full name of the gold coin.
Commonly confused: sov or soviet?
sov vs soviet
A 'soviet' was a council in the former Soviet Union; 'sov' is an informal short form of 'sovereign' and is not related.
Practice
What does 'sov' most commonly mean?
Choose one answer.
'Sov' is an informal short form of 'sovereign', especially the old British gold coin. The other options are not meanings of 'sov'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sov”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.