two bits
25 cents. A unit of currency during the colonial era was the Spanish dollar coin, which was cut into eight pieces, each called a “bit.” Dividing by four rather than eight was easier and led to change being made in two-bit increments. When the United States issued its own currency, the quarter became familiarly known as “two bits,” a phrase that appears to be dying out. It may well be best remembered for the high school and college cheer: “Two bits, four bits, six bits, a dollar / All for [name your school], stand up and holler” and for the musical tag “Shave an a haircut . . . two bits.”