# pennies

/ˈpɛniz/ (US) · /pˈɛnɪz/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/pennies
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. multiple coins

noun · CEFR A2

more than one penny coin.

For teachers: the plural form of penny, referring to multiple individual coins of the smallest denomination.

- He found a few pennies at the bottom of his bag.
- The child carefully counted the pennies he had saved in the jar, hoping there was enough for a chocolate bar.

### 2. a small amount of money

noun · CEFR B1 · Informal

a very small or unimportant amount of money.

For teachers: a negligible or very small sum of money, often used in idioms regarding cost or savings.

- The old car isn't worth much; I bought it for pennies.
- After the stock market crash, shares that were once valuable were being traded for pennies on the dollar.

## Examples

- He found a few pennies at the bottom of his bag.
- The child carefully counted her pennies before going to the shop to buy some sweets.
- While the individual components cost only pennies to manufacture, the research and development required to design the processor cost the company billions of dollars.

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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.