penny

¹

[ pen-ee ]

noun

, plural pen·nies, pence.

1. a copper and zinc U.S. coin, worth one 100th of the U.S. dollar; one cent. Previous compositions of U.S. pennies included certain percentages of nickel and steel.
2. a coin worth one 100th of the dollar of various other nations, although several of these nations, as Australia and New Zealand, no longer use pennies.
3. Also called new penny. a copper-plated steel, formerly bronze, coin of the United Kingdom, one 100th of a pound. : p
4. a former bronze coin and monetary unit of the United Kingdom and various other nations, one 12th of a shilling: use phased out in 1971. : d.
5. a sum of money:

   He spent every penny he ever earned.

6. the length of a nail in terms of certain standard designations, as eightpenny and sixtypenny.

adjective

1. Stock Exchange. of, relating to, or being penny stock:

   frenzied speculation in the penny market.

Penny

²

[ pen-ee ]

noun

1. a female given name, form of Penelope.

penny

/ ˈpɛnɪ /

noun

1. Also called (formerly)new penny (in Britain) a bronze coin having a value equal to one hundredth of a pound p
2. (in Britain before 1971) a bronze or copper coin having a value equal to one twelfth of a shilling or one two-hundred-and-fortieth of a pound d
3. a former monetary unit of the Republic of Ireland worth one hundredth of a pound
4. pennies (in the US and Canada) a cent
5. a coin of similar value, as used in several other countries
6. informal.
   used with a negative the least amount of money

   I don't have a penny

7. a bad penny informal.
   an objectionable person or thing (esp in the phrase turn up like a bad penny )
8. a pretty penny informal.
   a considerable sum of money
9. spend a penny informal.
   to urinate
10. the penny dropped informal.
    the explanation of something was finally realized
11. two a penny
    plentiful but of little value

Other Words From

• pen·nied adjective
• un·pen·nied adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of penny¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English peni, Old English penig, pænig, pen(n)ning, pending, cognate with Old Frisian penning, panning, Old Saxon, Dutch penning, Old High German pfenning, phantinc, phenting ( German Pfennig ), Old Norse penningr (perhaps from Old English ); from unattested West Germanic or Germanic pandingaz, probably equivalent to unattested pand- + unattested -ingaz; -ing ³. The origin of spend a penny is from the former cost of using a public lavatory

Word History and Origins

Origin of penny¹

Old English penig, pening; related to Old Saxon penni ( n ) g, Old High German pfeni ( n ) c, German Pfennig

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. a bad penny, someone or something undesirable.
2. a pretty penny, Informal. a considerable sum of money:

   Their car must have cost them a pretty penny.

3. spend a penny, Chiefly British Slang. to urinate.
4. turn an honest penny, to earn one's living honestly; make money by fair means:

   He's never turned an honest penny in his life.

More idioms and phrases containing penny

• in for a penny, in for a pound
• pinch pennies
• pretty penny
• turn up (like a bad penny)

Example Sentences

"It's like the penny was dropping, the expectation is that you’re there for a job, and actually you’re just there as a potential piece of meat."

From BBC

“I’m very against big corporations taking a bunch of money, because where does it go? Iron Maiden gave us $10,000 so I thought why don’t we form our own cancer fund? We know if everybody gives a penny, it’s going to go straight to where we want it to go to, which is research and education.”

From Los Angeles Times

That included then-prime minister Boris Johnson, with then cabinet member Penny Mordaunt telling the inquiry that two years of messages with him had disappeared.

From BBC

She is the penny pincher, and she’s the motivator for keeping everybody’s spirits up, sort of.

From Los Angeles Times

But this is what he likes about children: They don’t care about squeezing every last drop of profit from every penny.

From Los Angeles Times