# look as if one had lost a shilling and found sixpence

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/look-as-if-one-had-lost-a-shilling-and-found-sixpence
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To look very disappointed.

## Examples

- He looks as if he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
- You look as if you lost a shilling and found sixpence today.
- When the team lost the final game, the captain looked as if he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
- After opening the small birthday gift she had waited weeks for, the child looked as if she had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
- The chef looked as if he had lost a shilling and found sixpence when he realized the restaurant was completely empty on a Friday night.
- Upon receiving the news that the project was cancelled, the manager sat at his desk looking as if he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.

## Origin

The expression originates from pre-decimal British currency, in which a sixpence was valued at exactly half a shilling. The phrasing describes the specific facial geometry of a man who has experienced a minor windfall immediately following a larger financial disappointment, resulting in a net loss of fifty per cent. It is the look of one who has been spared total catastrophe but remains mathematically worse off than when he started.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.