In my last blog entry I unequivocally stated I would not be spending another red cent on frozen fish sticks. And as I typed those words, I wondered, as I often do, about the origination, or etymology, of this oft-used phrase.
So naturally, I turned to my new best friend Google to research the idiom.
You probably guessed that the one-cent copper coin was called a “red cent,” based on the copper’s reddish color. But did you know it dates back to 1793? Me neither. These penny copper coins were also called “coppers” and “copper cents.”
The phrase “not worth a copper” was coined, so to speak, in 1788. So naturally, “not worth a red cent” followed a few years later, circa 1820, and “not one red cent” came into common use by 1849.
So today my blog is not just entertaining, but also educational. And if this question comes up while you’re a contestant on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” you’ll thank me!
