penny
1 Americannoun
plural
pennies, pence-
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.
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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.
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Also called new penny. a copper-plated steel, formerly bronze, coin of the United Kingdom, one 100th of a pound. p
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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.
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a sum of money.
He spent every penny he ever earned.
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the length of a nail in terms of certain standard designations, as eightpenny and sixtypenny.
adjective
idioms
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spend a penny, to urinate.
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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.
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a pretty penny, a considerable sum of money.
Their car must have cost them a pretty penny.
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a bad penny, someone or something undesirable.
noun
noun
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Also called (formerly): new penny. p. (in Britain) a bronze coin having a value equal to one hundredth of a pound
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d. (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
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a former monetary unit of the Republic of Ireland worth one hundredth of a pound
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(in the US and Canada) a cent
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a coin of similar value, as used in several other countries
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informal (used with a negative) the least amount of money
I don't have a penny
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informal an objectionable person or thing (esp in the phrase turn up like a bad penny )
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informal a considerable sum of money
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informal to urinate
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informal the explanation of something was finally realized
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plentiful but of little value
Other Word Forms
- pennied adjective
- unpennied adjective
Etymology
Origin of penny
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
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Unlike traditional papers sold by expensive subscription; newsboys hawked these “penny papers” in the streets.
From Literature
In its fourth-quarter earnings report Thursday, Block reported earnings per share of 65 cents, down from 71 cents a year before but ahead of the FactSet consensus by a penny.
From MarketWatch
The board declared a dividend of 150 pence a share for 2025, up from 130 pence a share a year earlier.
The company’s board declared a final dividend of 7.5 pence a share, in line with its interim payout and down sharply from 24.4 pence a year before.
If you give him one penny of your own money, it will open up a transactional codependence between you and this man, who is a virtual stranger.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
