ten a penny

adjective

So common as to be practically or almost worthless.

“People with your skills are ten a penny these days.”

Similar
a dime a dozentwo a pennyaveragebasicbog-standardcommoncommon as bumscommon as dirt
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Meanings

adjectiveten a penny (not comparable)
  1. UKidiomaticnot comparableSo common as to be practically or almost worthless.

    People with your skills are ten a penny these days.

    1 more example

    Near-synonyms: not worth a dime; see also Thesaurus:worthless

    Synonyms: a dime a dozen, two a penny, average, basic, bog-standard, common, common as bums, common as dirt

  2. not comparableUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see ten, a, penny: sold at ten (10) units per penny (1d or 1¢).

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveSo common as to be practically or almost worthless.

Similar
a dime a dozentwo a pennyaveragebasicbog-standardcommoncommon as bumscommon as dirtcommon as muckcommon as pig tracksdime a dozeneverydayfrequentgeneralhabitualnonrarepar for the coursepedestrianplainquotidian
Also see
a dime a dozencommontuppenny-ha'pennytwo a penny

Origin

With literal origins; now usually in the figuratively extended sense.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Japanese 二束三文
  • 二束三文 (nisoku sanmon)so common as to be practically worthless
Russian как собак нерезаных
  • как собак нерезаных (kak sobak nerezanyx)so common as to be practically worthless
Swedish tretton på dussinet
  • tretton på dussinetso common as to be practically worthless
Cite this entry
APA

ten a penny. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ten%20a%20penny

MLA

“ten a penny.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ten%20a%20penny. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ten a penny,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ten%20a%20penny.

Source: ten a penny on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.