pennyworth

4 9.9

A small amount of something you can buy for one penny

noun
/ˈpɛniˌwɜrθ/

Archaic

: pennyworth

All addressed to Wilfred Pennyworth.

Examples

Actually, I'm looking for Alfred Pennyworth.

Batman & Robin (1997)
Alfred Pennyworth at your service, ma'am.

The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
Who would not give all else for two Pennyworth only of Beautiful Soup!

Alice in Wonderland (1999)
"The Pennyworth Chronicles Volume One."

How to Ruin the Holidays (2023)
You can get a small toy for a pennyworth at the dollar store.
He found a pennyworth of candy under the couch cushions.
She said the trinket was worth only a pennyworth, so she left it behind.

Synonyms

penny

vspennyworth

513 1.0

A small coin worth one of 100 parts of a pound or dollar

refers to the purchasable amount rather than the physical coin

penn'orth

vspennyworth

Archaic

9.9

A small amount you can buy for one penny

has identical meaning but is written as one word without an apostrophe

How Much

ton

Specialized

188 1.0

pound

∞ 1.0

handful

81 1.0

pennyworth

Archaic

4 9.9

Surface Forms

pennyworth singular

pennyworths plural

Morphology

pennyworth = penny + worth (transparent) = penny + worth

The meaning 'an amount worth a penny' is directly and predictably derived from 'penny' + 'worth'.

Etymology

Pennyworth is made of penny and worth, where worth means 'value'. It originally meant the amount you could buy for a penny, so a pennyworth still means a small quantity or value equal to one penny.