Skip to content
APG.American
Pronunciation Guide
HOW TO PRONOUNCE

sterling

/ˈstɜɹlɪŋ/

Press play to hear how to pronounce sterling.

American Pronunciation Guide · 1:03
Watch on YouTube ↗

What does sterling mean?

noun

  1. An English silver penny first introduced by the Normans.
  2. A penny issued in other countries, such as Scotland.
  3. The currency of the United Kingdom, also called the pound sterling
More meanings (41)

noun

  1. Short for sterling silver (“an alloy containing not less than 92.5 percent silver, the remainder usually being copper; articles made from this alloy collectively”).
  2. (historical) Former British gold or silver coinage of a standard fineness (0.91666 for gold and 0.925 for silver).
  3. (obsolete) Synonym of pennyweight (“a unit of mass equal to 24 grains, or ¹⁄₂₀ of a troy ounce”)
  4. (obsolete) Money generally.
  5. (obsolete) The standard degree of fineness.
  6. (obsolete) Obsolete form of starling (“a family, Sturnidae, of passerine birds; specifically, the common starling, Sturnus vulgaris, which has dark, iridescent plumage”).
  7. (obsolete) Obsolete form of starling (“an enclosure like a coffer-dam, formed of piles driven closely together before any structure or work, as a protection against the wash of waves, commonly used to protect the piers of a bridge”).

adjective

  1. Of or relating to the currency of the United Kingdom, or former types of English or British coinage.
  2. Of silver: being of standard quality.
  3. Of a thing: of or relating to, or made from, sterling silver.
  4. (figuratively) Of acknowledged influence; authoritative; also, of high or excellent quality; of proven worth.
  5. (archaic) Of English (or (obsolete) Scottish) currency: genuine, of legal tender.
  6. (figuratively, obsolete) Having currency (“general acceptance, recognition, or use”).

proper noun

  1. A Scottish surname, variant of Stirling.
  2. An English surname, thought to be a variant of Starling.
  3. A unisex given name transferred from the surname.
  4. A census-designated place in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska.
  5. A city, the county seat of Logan County, Colorado.
  6. A town in Windham County, Connecticut.
  7. A census-designated place in Glynn County, Georgia.
  8. An unincorporated community in Bingham County, Idaho.
  9. A city in Whiteside County, Illinois.
  10. A ghost town in Jackson County, Iowa.
  11. A city in Rice County, Kansas, named after Sterling Rosan.
  12. A town in Worcester County, Massachusetts.
  13. A village in Deep River Township, Arenac County, Michigan.
  14. An unincorporated community in Howell County, Missouri.
  15. An unincorporated community in Madison County, Montana.
  16. A village in Johnson County, Nebraska.
  17. A town in Cayuga County, New York.
  18. An unincorporated community in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.
  19. An unincorporated community in Burleigh County, North Dakota.
  20. A census-designated place in Milton Township, Wayne County, Ohio.
  21. A town in Comanche County, Oklahoma.
  22. An unincorporated community in Woodward Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.
  23. A town in Sanpete County, Utah.
  24. A census-designated place in Loudoun County, Virginia.
  25. An unincorporated community in Skagit County, Washington.
  26. A town in Polk County, Wisconsin.
  27. A town in Vernon County, Wisconsin.
  28. A number of townships, listed under Sterling Township.
Wiktionary contributors Wiktionary contributors

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/ˈstɜɹlɪŋ/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗

Other dictionary pronunciations

/ˈstɝ.lɪŋ/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

The Scotch fishermen catch over a million barrels of herrings annually, representing a value of about a million and a-half sterling.
Samuel SmilesMen of Invention and IndustryProject Gutenberg ebook #725
I think I hear some say, "a million sterling! how can any man out of Bedlam dream of raising such a sum?"
William BoothIn Darkest England, and the Way OutProject Gutenberg ebook #475
More book examples (3)
When their master has occasion for their labour, he gives them, besides, two pecks of oatmeal a-week, worth about sixteen pence sterling.
Adam SmithAn Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of NationsProject Gutenberg ebook #3300
Here was the woman's sickness--the handiwork of an indulgent mother who had never taught her daughter the sterling ideals of unselfish living.
Robert S. (Robert Sproul) CarrollOur Nervous Friends — Illustrating the Mastery of NervousnessProject Gutenberg ebook #5994
It has been one of the arts of the envious to set up a contemptible rival to eclipse the splendour of sterling merit.
William GodwinThoughts on Man, His Nature, Productions and Discoveries Interspersed with Some Particulars Respecting the AuthorProject Gutenberg ebook #743