penny wise and pound foolish
English
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penny wise and pound foolish
Where it comes from
From the British currency (one penny being one hundredth of a pound or, prior to decimalisation, one 240th of a pound).
adjective more penny wise and pound foolish · most penny wise and pound foolish · penny-wise and pound-foolish · penny wise, pound foolish
- Prudent and thrifty with small amounts of money, but wasteful with large amounts. In the past our government has nowhere been more penny wise and pound foolish than in connection with its expenditures for conservation.
Translations
Every language
adj thrifty with small amounts of money but wasteful with large amounts
| Español | ahorra en el chocolate del loro, el dinero del avaro, dos veces va al mercado, el dinero del pobre dos veces se gasta |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 安物買いの銭失い yasumono-gai no zeni-ushinai |
| 中文 | 捨本逐末 /舍本逐末 shěběn-zhúmò |
| Ελληνικά | ακριβός στα πίτουρα και φτηνός στ’ αλεύρι akrivós sta pítoura kai ftinós st’ alévri |
| Română | scump la tărâțe și ieftin la făină |
| Русский | эконо́мный в мелоча́х и расточи́тельный в кру́пном ekonómnyj v meločáx i rastočítelʹnyj v krúpnom |
Talk about this word "penny wise and pound foolish." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/penny%20wise%20and%20pound%20foolish. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026. penny wise and pound foolish. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/penny%20wise%20and%20pound%20foolish "penny wise and pound foolish." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/penny%20wise%20and%20pound%20foolish.Cite this
@misc{penny_wise_and_pound_foolish_2026,
title = {penny wise and pound foolish},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/penny%20wise%20and%20pound%20foolish},
urldate = {2026-11-07}
}
