| Formes composées |
WordReference English-French Dictionary © 2026:
a dime a dozen (US),
ten a penny (UK) adj | figurative, informal (common) | être légion loc v |
| | In Hollywood, aspiring young actresses are a dime a dozen. |
| | À Hollywood, les starlettes sont légion. |
| | (familier) | à la pelle |
| | À Hollywood, on trouve des starlettes à la pelle. |
a pretty sum,
a pretty penny n | informal (money: considerable amount) | une jolie somme, une coquette somme nf |
| | I'd bet a pretty sum that the bankers will never give up their bonuses. |
| a bad penny n | figurative, informal (undesirable person) (figuré, vieilli) | faux jeton nm |
| | | fourbe nm |
| | You shouldn't go out with Rick; he's a bad penny. |
| cost a pretty penny v expr | informal, figurative (be expensive) (figuré, familier) | coûter la peau des fesses, coûter les yeux de la tête, coûter un bras loc v |
| | I bet that dress cost a pretty penny. |
| | Je parie que cette robe a dû te coûter les yeux de la tête. |
| | (figuré, familier) | coûter bonbon, coûter un joli paquet loc v |
| | Je parie que cette robe a dû te coûter bonbon. |
| ha'penny n | UK, informal, historical (British half-penny coin) (pièce de monnaie) | demi-penny nm |
not have a penny to your name,
also US: not have a cent to your name,
not have a dollar to your name,
not have a dime to your name v expr | (be penniless) | être fauché, être fauché comme les blés loc v |
| | (plus soutenu) | être complètement désargenté, être complètement sans le sou loc v |
| | The bankrupt man didn't have a penny to his name. |
| penny arcade n | (amusement area with slot machines) | salle de jeux nf |
| | Some boardwalks still have old-fashioned penny arcades. |
| penny dreadful n | historical, UK (sensationalist fiction) | roman à quatre sous nm |
| | | roman-feuilleton à sensation nm |
| the penny drops expr | UK (to realize or come to senses) | ça fait tilt expr |
| | | avoir un déclic loc v |
| | Amanda was confused at first, but then the penny dropped and she knew what to do. |
| penny for your thoughts expr | figurative (what are you thinking?) | À quoi pensez-vous ? À quoi penses-tu ? expr |
| | | J'aimerais lire dans vos pensées. J'aimerais lire dans tes pensées. expr |
| | "Penny for your thoughts." "Oh, I was just thinking about all the jobs I need to do today." |
| penny loafer | (shoes) | mocassin nm |
| penny pincher n | informal (miserly person) (familier) | grippe-sou nm |
| | (familier) | pingre nmf |
| | (Can, familier) | séraphin nm |
| | | avare nmf |
| penny stock n | US (cheap stock) | action cotée en cents nf |
| | Bob focused on selling penny stock to wealthy investors. |
| | Bob se concentre sur la vente d'actions cotées en cents à de riches investisseurs. |
| penny-farthing n | historical (early model of bicycle) (vieux vélo) | grand-bi nm |
| penny-pinch⇒ vi | figurative, informal (spend little money) | être près de ses sous loc v |
| penny-pinching n | informal (frugality, miserly behavior) (familier) | économies de bouts de chandelle nfpl |
| | (péjoratif) | avarice, radinerie, mesquinerie nf |
| | (familier) | pingrerie nf |
| | (littéraire) | ladrerie nf |
| | The character of Scrooge is famous for his penny-pinching. |
| penny-pinching adj | informal (frugal, miserly) (péjoratif) | avare, mesquin adj |
| | (familier, péjoratif) | radin, pingre adj |
| | (littéraire) | ladre adj |
| | (vieilli) | chiche adj |
| | Jack's penny-pinching boss won't give him a pay rise. |
| penny-wise adj | (careful in spending money) | économe adj |
| penny-wise and pound-foolish expr | UK, dated (careless with large sums) (vieilli) | économiser un sou et en prodiguer mille loc v |
| | | faire des économies de bouts de chandelles loc v |
pinch pennies,
pinch the pennies v expr | figurative, informal (spend little money) | compter ses sous loc v |
| | | être près de ses sous loc v |
| | I wish I earned more money; I really have to pinch pennies. |
| | Si seulement je gagnais plus d'argent ! Là, je dois vraiment compter mes sous. |
| spend a penny v expr | UK, figurative, informal, euphemism (urinate, use toilet) (familier) | aller au petit coin loc v |
| | Please excuse me; I need to spend a penny. |
| | Excusez-moi : je dois aller au petit coin. |
| turn an honest penny v expr | informal (earn money by fair means) | gagner honnêtement sa vie, gagner sa vie honnêtement loc v |
two a penny,
ten a penny adj | (common and of little value) | monnaie courante expr |
without a penny to your name,
also US: without a cent to your name,
without a dollar to your name,
without a dime to your name expr | (penniless) | sans le sou, sans un sou expr |
| | After losing her job, Julie ended up without a penny to her name. |