When someone says 2 bits what the hell are they talking about?

Answer 1

Slang for a quarter

Answer 2

A "bit" is 1/8Th of a dollar. Therefore two bits is 25 cents.

The name came from the days when the Spanish dollar would be broken up into eight smaller "bits" with each bit worth 12.5 cents. Thus a quarter would be "two bits." A dime was sometimes called a "short bit."

The custom of the stock market to list stock prices in 1/8s came from this practice which was carried thru until the late 1990s when they changed to a decimal system.

Answer 3

A quarter is a coin worth one-quarter of a United States dollar, or 25 cents. The quarter has been produced since 1796, and is the highest denomination US coin commonly in circulation, although this may or may not change due to the Presidential $1 Coin Program.

It is sometimes referred to as two bits because two bits of a Spanish piece of eight coin, which was often used in the early years of the United States, made up a quarter of that coin's value.

Answer 4

25 cents or a quarter. In the early days of America gold dollar coins could be cut into 8 pieces to pay for things. Two pieces of two 'bits' were a quarter 4 bits a half dollar and 6 bits a 3/4 dollar.

Answer 5

Centuries ago, Spanish Dubloons (sp?) were minted with with 4 grooves passing through the middle of the coin and from one side to the other and evenly spaced. This was so the coin could be broken apart to make change, for example. Have you ever heard the term, "pieces of eight"? The dubloon is what the phrase is refering to.

One fourth of a dubloon would be 2 pieces of eight, or 2 bits. The term has been adopted to mean one fourth of a dollar, or 25 cents (one quarter).

Answer 6

In the days of old, a form of currency was used that was called an 'Eight'. It was a large coin that had eight sections to it that could be broken off. Hence the term, "Piece of Eight". A single piece was referred to as a 'Bit'. Two pieces of Eight was called "Two Bits".

Now fast forward to the 20th Century. A dollar bill could be fragmented into 4 quarters. 2 quarters was referred slangily as 'Two Bits'. So, 'Two Bits' means 50 cents.

Answer 7

A quarter. There used to be an old high school cheer that went "two bits, four bits, six bits, a dollar, all for Central stand up and holler" -- 8 bits is a dollar.

Answer 8

A quarter (yes, the coin). A "bit" would be an eighth of a dollar.

Answer 9

2 bits is a quarter of a dollar. Old 1899 song had the phrase, "Shave and a haircut - 2 bits"

Answer 10

Fifty cents.

In days gone by, coins were generally pennies, quarters and dollars. Pennies were referred to as cents, quarters as bits and dollars as dollars. So when someone says two bits - it refers to 2 quarters - or fifty cents.