Crossword Genius

Writer receives this French money (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pence

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'money' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'writer receives this french' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'writer' could be 'pen' (something which writes) and 'pen' is found within the answer.
'this french' could be 'ce' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'ce' is found in the answer.
No letters remain.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for pence that I've seen before include "p" , "Small quantity of money" , "Small change" , "Copper coins" , "Money used to be pounds, shillings and ....." .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app