penny wedding
- noun
- /ˈpɛni ˈwɛdɪŋ/
- Archaic
:
boda económica
- Guests at a penny wedding often brought homemade food and small tokens instead of expensive gifts.
Examples
-
At their penny wedding, guests contributed small dishes and heartfelt keepsakes, creating a warm and communal celebration.
-
The tradition of the penny wedding was once common in rural Scottish communities.
-
They couldn't afford a lavish ceremony, so they had a penny wedding attended by only close friends and family.
-
They decided to have a penny wedding to keep costs low.
-
A penny wedding can be a charming way to celebrate love.
-
Choosing a penny wedding allowed them to focus on love and friendship rather than on extravagant spending.
-
The couple opted for a penny wedding to reflect their values of simplicity and community support.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A ceremony and celebration where two people get married
How Expensive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a simple/inexpensive wedding paid for by small contributions' is directly derivable from combining 'penny' (a small coin/amount) with 'wedding' — the modifier clearly signals a low-cost or pay-by-small-amounts event. This compositional pattern is straightforward and likely obvious to a B1 learner who knows both words, even if they are unaware of the specific cultural practice surrounding such weddings.
Etymology
Penny wedding may come from an old custom where each guest gave a penny or a small gift to help pay for the wedding. That's why the phrase now means 'a simple, inexpensive wedding'.