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The meaning and origin of the expression: Not worth a plugged nickel

Not worth a plugged nickel

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What's the meaning of the phrase 'Not worth a plugged nickel'?

Worthless.

What's the origin of the phrase 'Not worth a plugged nickel'?

Plugs are the holes made in coins, which is then filled with a cheaper metal. Coins so tampered with are no longer legal tender and are thus worthless if spotted. The phrase is, of course, American. Before 'plugged nickels' there were 'plugged quarters' and 'plugged dimes'. The various versions of the phrase appear in the 1880s. The nickel, being a lower denomination coin, lends itself better than quarters and dimes to a phrase expressing worthlessness. Oddly though, the lowest denomination coin is the cent and the phrase 'not worth a plugged cent' doesn't appear until later. The earliest I've found for that is 1908.

[For those not familiar with US coinage; a quarter is 25 cents, a dime is 10 cents and a nickel is 5 cents.]

The earliest of any version of the phrase that I can find is from The Daily Nebraska State Journal, 14th September 1883. This indicates the illegitimate nature of plugged coins:

"No," said a Philadelphia conductor, "I never attempt to pass a plugged quarter on a man unless he's got his Sunday girl with him. Then he's afraid she'll think him mean if he get's mad.

Gary Martin - the author of the phrases.org.uk website.

By Gary Martin

Gary Martin is a writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.

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