Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Worth or priced at threepence.
- adjective Very small; trifling.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Worth three pence only; hence, of little worth.
- noun Same as
threepence , 1.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Costing or worth three pence; hence, worth but little; poor; mean.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Having a value or cost of
threepence .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective of trifling worth
- adjective used of nail size; 1 1/8 in long
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The name of the small silver threepenny coin, known as the threepenny joey or just joey, had the origin in another small coin, a fourpenny piece or groat.
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To-day, however, he overhauled the contents of the trays with rather more curiosity than usual; not because he expected to find a pearl of great price among the dust and dog's ears of the "threepenny" tray.
Reginald Cruden A Tale of City Life Talbot Baines Reed 1872
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"threepenny" tray -- one a fragment of _Robinson Crusoe_, the other Part
Reginald Cruden A Tale of City Life Talbot Baines Reed 1872
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Annie and Wee Jean waited in the queue clutching their threepenny bits for an ice cream.
A Small Death in the Great Glen A. D. Scott 2010
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Along with the threepenny bit it was my favourite coin.
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When this game was first released in 1880 it was so hugely popular in taverns and inns that the bank of England was forced to mint more threepenny bits to keep up with demand.
Boing Boing 2007
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My grandfather, who lived with us, won my affection by being a soft touch for threepenny bits which could be used for ice-cream.
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Do you not know that the tarantula, which is no bigger than a threepenny bit,70 has only to touch the mouth and it will afflict its victim with pains and drive him out of his senses.
Memorabilia 2007
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I went to the threepenny Saturday morning kids 'program at the cinema and the first actor I ever saw was the Lone Ranger and I wanted to be the Lone Ranger and I knew I could do it.
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Mr. Brooks was dickering with a local over a threepenny Virginia green from 1851, a rare and famous stamp in this alternate.
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