/ ˈpeni; NAmE / noun ( pl. pen·nies or pence )
HELP NOTE : 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 .
1.
( abbr. 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.
2.
( abbr. d ) a British coin in use until 1971. There were twelve pennies in one shilling .
3.
( NAmE ) a cent
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IDIOMS
- every penny
- in for a penny, in for a pound
- not a penny
- the penny drops
- a penny for your thoughts | a penny for them
- turn up like a bad penny
- two / ten a penny
—more at pinch verb , pretty adjective , spend verb
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English penig , penning of Germanic origin; related to Dutch penning , German Pfennig , perhaps also to the verb pawn and (with reference to shape) pan .