
IdiomDaily Life
English
without a penny to one's name
Meaning: With no money at all.
Example: “He arrived in New York without a penny to his name.”
Origin: A penny is the smallest coin. The phrase is found from the 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
French: Se retrouver une main devant, une main derrière Literally: To be left one hand in front, one hand behind
More English idioms
- what have you been smoking? Said to someone whose idea sounds crazy.
- throw one's weight around To use one's power or importance in an overbearing way.
- yada yada yada And so on; skipping boring details.
- swap spit To kiss passionately (slang).
- wide of the mark Inaccurate or irrelevant.
- hit the wall To suddenly run out of energy.
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Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
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