penny
gb/pˈɛni/ us/pˈɛni/
A2
Engleză
~ 7900
Sensuri
0 sensuri
Substantiv
A2
entity
1
U.S. one-cent coin
A small brown coin in the U.S., worth one cent (1/100 of a dollar).
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes think penny is a general word for any coin. In American English, a penny is specifically the one-cent coin, not a nickel, dime, or quarter.
Sinonime
cent (Standard word in prices and formal counting; penny is slightly more informal and often refers to the physical coin.)
Colocații
find a penny
|pick up a penny
|penny coin
|penny jar
|penny candy
|spare change of pennies
Teme
money
|daily life
|shopping
|finance
|core_vocabulary
Exemple
- He bent down to pick up a penny from the sidewalk.
- I dropped a penny into the charity box by the register.
- Do you have a penny for the parking meter?
- The coin collection includes a rare steel penny from 1943.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- I found a penny on the street.
- She gave the boy a penny for the bus.
- He put three pennies into the glass jar.
- This machine does not take pennies.
Substantiv
B1
quantity
2
a very small amount of money
A very small amount of money, often meaning almost nothing.
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners may think this always refers to a physical coin. In many sentences, especially with 'not a penny', 'every penny', or 'single penny', it means a very small amount of money, not one specific coin.
Sinonime
a little money (Neutral, simple phrase; does not carry the strong idea of 'almost nothing' that penny often does in negatives.)
Antonime
a fortune (Emphasizes a very large amount of money, the opposite of a tiny amount.)
Colocații
not have a penny
|every penny
|save every penny
|count the pennies
|spare a penny
|waste a penny
Teme
money
|daily life
|emotions
|finance
|core_vocabulary
Exemple
- She does not have a penny to her name after paying all the bills.
- We saved every penny for two years to buy that car.
- The company will not spend a single penny on extra safety checks.
- He counts every penny when he goes grocery shopping.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- I do not have a penny in my wallet.
- They saved every penny for their trip.
- We cannot waste a penny on things we do not need.
- He will not pay one more penny for this service.
Substantiv
B1
entity
3
British one-pence coin or unit
In the U.K., a small coin worth one penny (1/100 of a pound).
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes confuse 'penny', 'pence', and 'p'. In modern British English, 'p' or 'pence' is used for amounts (for example, 20p, twenty pence), while 'penny' is mostly singular or used in set phrases.
Sinonime
pence (Used mainly for amounts (for example, 'fifty pence'); 'penny' is usually singular or used when focusing on the coin itself.)
Colocații
one penny
|penny coin
|penny piece
|pay a penny
|two pennies
|fifty pence
Teme
money
|shopping
|britain
|finance
|core_vocabulary
Exemple
- In the UK, a penny is worth one-hundredth of a pound.
- He dropped a one-penny coin into the bus fare box.
- British shoppers often say '50p' instead of 'fifty pence' or 'fifty pennies'.
- The old one-penny piece was much larger than the modern penny coin.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- In Britain, a penny is part of the pound.
- This sweet costs one penny.
- He paid with a pound coin and got a few pennies in change.
- She showed me an old British penny from 1965.
Gramatică
Forma de dicționar
penny
IPA
GB/pˈɛni/
US/pˈɛni/
Silabe și accent
penny (1 silabă)
Stress on 1st syllable (penny)
Forme ale cuvântului
Noun
- Base: penny
- Plural: pence, pennies
Familie de cuvinte
Forms
pence
noun
pennies
noun
Negative and opposite forms
penniless
adjective B2
Expresii
a penny for your thoughts
1/ə pˈɛni fɚ jˈʊɹ θˈɔts/
idiom
asking what someone is thinking
Said to someone who is quiet, to ask them to tell you what they are thinking about.
Exemple
- You have been staring out the window for ten minutes; a penny for your thoughts?
- He looked worried, so she smiled and said, 'A penny for your thoughts.'
- Everyone went silent, and the teacher joked, 'A penny for your thoughts, class?'
a penny saved is a penny earned
1/ə pˈɛni sˈeɪvd ˈɪz ə pˈɛni ˈɚnd/
idiom
saving money is like earning it
A proverb that means money you do not spend is as useful as money you earn.
Exemple
- He always turns off the lights, saying, 'A penny saved is a penny earned.'
- When I make my own lunch instead of buying it, I remember that a penny saved is a penny earned.
- She lives by the rule that a penny saved is a penny earned and avoids unnecessary shopping.
a pretty penny
1/ə pɹˈɪti pˈɛni/
idiom
a large amount of money
A lot of money, usually more than you would like to pay.
Exemple
- That designer bag must have cost a pretty penny.
- They spent a pretty penny on their wedding reception.
- The repairs are going to cost you a pretty penny, I am afraid.
in for a penny, in for a pound
1/ˈɪn fɚ ə pˈɛni | ˈɪn fɚ ə pˈaʊnd/
idiom
continue once you are committed
Used to say that after you start doing something, you might as well continue, even if it becomes bigger, harder, or riskier.
Exemple
- We have already invested so much time in this project; in for a penny, in for a pound.
- He decided to apply for one job and then thought, in for a penny, in for a pound, and sent out ten more applications.
- They had already broken the rules once, so it was a case of in for a penny, in for a pound.
not have a penny to your name
1/nˈɑt hˈæv ə pˈɛni tə jˈʊɹ nˈeɪm/
idiom
have no money at all
To be completely without money; to be very poor.
Exemple
- After the business failed, he did not have a penny to his name.
- When she arrived in the city, she did not have a penny to her name and slept on a friend's sofa.
- They grew up with almost nothing and often had barely a penny to their names.
not worth a penny
1/nˈɑt wˈɚθ ə pˈɛni/
fixed phrase
almost worthless
Used to say that something has almost no value or is very poor in quality.
Exemple
- This old laptop is not worth a penny now.
- His advice was not worth a penny; it only made things worse.
- If the car engine is broken, the rest of it is not worth a penny.
pennies from heaven
1/pˈɛniz fɹˈʌm hˈɛvən/
idiom
literary
unexpected money or good luck
Money or help that comes suddenly and by good luck, when you really need it.
Exemple
- The tax refund felt like pennies from heaven after a very hard year.
- For a small charity, a big anonymous donation can be pennies from heaven.
- The extra funding arrived like pennies from heaven just before the project closed.
penny-pinching
1/pˈɛni pˈɪnt͡ʃɪŋ/
fixed phrase
informal
unwilling to spend money
Being too careful with money and not wanting to spend even small amounts.
Exemple
- The company's penny-pinching attitude is starting to hurt staff morale.
- He is so penny-pinching that he will walk for an hour to avoid paying for the bus.
- Her parents were not rich, but they were not penny-pinching either.
spend a penny
1/spˈɛnd ə pˈɛni/
idiom
informal
go to the toilet (euphemism)
A polite or humorous way, mainly in British English, to say that you are going to the toilet to urinate.
Exemple
- Excuse me a moment, I just need to spend a penny.
- She whispered that she was going to spend a penny before the movie started.
- In old train stations, you really did have to spend a penny to use the toilets.
the penny drops
1/ðə pˈɛni dɹˈɑps/
idiom
sudden moment of understanding
Used to say that someone finally understands something after not understanding it for some time.
Exemple
- I explained it three times before the penny finally dropped.
- You could see the penny drop when she realized what he meant.
- It took a while, but the penny eventually dropped for the whole team.
turn up like a bad penny
1/tˈɚn ˈʌp lˈaɪk ə bˈæd pˈɛni/
idiom
informal
unwelcome person who keeps returning
Used when an unwanted person or thing appears again and again, even though you do not want them.
Exemple
- That salesman turns up like a bad penny every few months.
- Just when we thought the issue was solved, it turned up like a bad penny.
- He keeps turning up like a bad penny at family events, even though no one invites him.
worth every penny
1/wˈɚθ ˈɛvɹi pˈɛni/
fixed phrase
cost is fully justified by value
Used to say that something is expensive but very good, so the high price is acceptable.
Exemple
- The hotel was pricey, but the view of the ocean made it worth every penny.
- This phone was worth every penny because I use it all day for work.
- The course is not cheap, but graduates say it is worth every penny.