a "bad penny"

Posted by Smokey Stover on April 16, 2006

In Reply to: a "bad penny" posted by James Briggs on April 13, 2006

: : Where does the expression about a "bad penny" come from what does it mean, what is the real expression anyway

: The expression I always knew invariably went along the lines of "he's turned up like a bad penny",
: i.e. he's unwelcome, just as a "bad"(counterfeit) penny was unwelcome if given to you in change. Remember, the saying must be very old, certainly going back to times when a penny was worth a bit!

Briggsey is right about bad pennies, but not necessarily about "times when a penny was worth a bit". In the U.S. a bit used to be worth 12½ cents.
Ah, those were the days! ♬ SS ♬