penny
noun /ˈpeni/
/ˈpeni/
(plural pennies, pence
In senses 1 and 2, pennies is used to refer to the coins, and pence to refer to an amount of money. In sense 3, the plural is pennies.Idioms /pens/
/pens/
)- (abbreviation p)a small British coin and unit of money. There are 100 pence in one pound (£1).
- He had a few pennies in his pocket.
- That will be 45 pence, please.
- They cost 20p each.
- (abbreviation d)a British coin in use until 1971. There were twelve pennies in one shilling and twenty shillings in a pound.
- (North American English) a cent
- The fee ranges from a few pennies to $30 or more.
Word OriginOld English penig, penning of Germanic origin; related to Dutch penning, German Pfennig, perhaps also to the verb pawn and (with reference to shape) pan.
Idioms
every penny
- all of the money
- We collected £700 and every penny went to charity.
- She’s on a high salary but I’m sure she deserves every penny.
in for a penny, in for a pound
- (saying) used to say that since you have started to do something, it is worth spending as much time or money as you need to in order to complete it
not a penny
- no money at all
- It didn't cost a penny.
- He has never paid me a penny.
- She hasn’t got a penny to her name.
the penny drops
- (informal, especially British English) used to say that somebody has finally understood or realized something that they had not understood or realized before
- I had to explain the joke to her a couple of times before the penny dropped.
a penny for your thoughts | a penny for them
- (saying) used to ask somebody what they are thinking about
pinch pennies
- (informal) to try to spend as little money as possible
a pretty penny
- (old-fashioned) a lot of money
- I bet that cost you a pretty penny.
spend a penny
- (old-fashioned, British English) people say ‘spend a penny’ to avoid saying ‘use the toilet’
turn up like a bad penny
- (informal) (of a person) to appear when they are not welcome or not wanted, especially when this happens regularly
two/ten a penny (British English)
(North American English a dime a dozen)
- very common and therefore not valuable
- Teachers of history are ten a penny.