lost a shilling and found sixpence
- idiom
- Archaic
:
perder un chelín y encontrar un seis peniques
- He smiled, but it was the smile of someone who'd lost a shilling and found sixpence.
Examples
-
After being reassigned to a smaller office, he looked as if he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
-
When she received a lower prize than expected, her expression was like she had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
-
He lost a shilling and found sixpence!
-
After the exam, she felt like she had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
-
After learning that she didn't win the top prize, she had a look as if she had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
-
He seemed pleased with his promotion, but his expression suggested he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
-
When he realized his raise was less than expected, he smiled like he had lost a shilling and found sixpence.
Surface Forms
Morphology
lose + a + shilling + and + find + sixpence
The literal words describe losing a shilling and finding a sixpence, which (if the learner knows that a sixpence is a smaller, older British coin than a shilling) yields the idea of a small consolation after a bigger loss, so there is a compositional basis. However, the coins are archaic and the exact value relationship and cultural use are not obvious to all B1 learners, and the expression functions as a conventionalized evaluative remark, so the meaning is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Lost a shilling and found sixpence shows a simple picture: someone loses a larger coin (lost a shilling) and then finds a smaller one (found sixpence), so they feel a bit pleased but still worse off. That's why it describes being 'a little pleased' after a small gain but still 'disappointed'.
