for two cents

Idioms  

1. For nothing; for a petty sum. For example, For two cents I'd quit the club entirely. Similarly, like two cents, means “of little or no value or importance, worthless,” as in She made me feel like two cents. The use of two cents in this sense is thought to be derived from a similar British use of twopence or tuppence, which dates from about 1600. The American coin was substituted in the 1800s, along with two bits, slang for 25 cents and also meaning “a petty sum.” Similarly,, meaning “to express one's unsolicited opinion for whatever it is worth,” dates from the late 1800s.

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Example Sentences

The new Panthers encouraged the other prisoners, who cut crops for two cents an hour, to work more slowly.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 8, 2017

I am going to release all of the transcripts of the speeches that I gave on Wall Street behind closed doors, not for $225,000, not for $2,000, not for two cents.

From Time • Apr. 14, 2016

What do you want for two cents a day?

From Washington Post • Apr. 2, 2016

Both the Union and the Confederacy issued a Jackson stamp for two cents: The Northern one was known as the Black Jack, the Southern one the Red Jack.

From Washington Post

When we wanted money, we walked along the roadside picking up beer cans and bottles that we redeemed for two cents each.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls