western australia

When the penny drops

@JudyEv (341269)

Rockingham, Australia

December 9, 2022 6:16pm CST

I used the phrase ‘the penny dropped’ the other day and, of course, I then started wondering how it first came about. It means that someone has finally understood or realised something. It seems it originated with the coin in the slot machines back in 1911. By dropping a penny in a slot, a chocolate bar would drop down into a holder. The same mechanism went on to have many other uses including being used in parking metres, making telephone calls or activating gas heating. Some would try to cheat the system by using washers or coins of a smaller denomination. Have you had the penny drop at some point? The photo is mine of a 1927 florin. I guess we’ll soon be seeing more coins with a king’s head on it rather than a queen’s.

25 people like this

25 responses

@wolfgirl569 (107535)

• Marion, Ohio

10 Dec 22

I wish you could still get candy for a penny

5 people like this

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@wolfgirl569 (107535)

• Marion, Ohio

10 Dec 22

@JudyEv That would be great.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

Wouldn't that be good? And an ice-cream would be sixpence.

4 people like this

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@spiderdust (14760)

• San Jose, California

10 Dec 22

I was wondering if you'd be getting new coins soon. It seems so strange that it will no longer be Elizabeth's face on money.

4 people like this

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@BarBaraPrz (47552)

• St. Catharines, Ontario

10 Dec 22

@JudyEv 70 years...

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

It's been Elizabeth's face for such a long, long time.

3 people like this

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@RebeccasFarm (90192)

• Arvada, Colorado

10 Dec 22

Oh yes I have had the penny drop many times in life, but wish it had dropped before I chose the wrong choice.

3 people like this

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@RebeccasFarm (90192)

• Arvada, Colorado

11 Dec 22

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

That would be helpful, wouldn't it?

1 person likes this

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@Juliaacv (51380)

• Canada

10 Dec 22

There will be quite a mix of coins here with so many from over the decades with the queen and just starting with the new king. I remember when kids had slugs and would use those in the penny candy machines.

3 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

People would try all sorts of washers and made-up coins to try to rort the machines.

1 person likes this

Anindita Sengupta

@aninditasen (16481)

• Raurkela, India

10 Dec 22

In India this way of using the telephone by dropping a coin doesn't exist anymore. We don't have public telephone boothes anymore now.

3 people like this

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@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

12 Dec 22

@aninditasen Do you know why they have removed the phone booths?

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

We have some public phone booths but I'm not sure how you operate them. Maybe it's with a credit card.

1 person likes this

Anindita Sengupta

@aninditasen (16481)

• Raurkela, India

11 Dec 22

@JudyEv At least you still have them in your country but in India they are all removed.

1 person likes this

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@LindaOHio (180678)

• United States

10 Dec 22

That's a new phrase for me. It will be interesting to see the new money.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

I'm waiting to see what the image of the king will be like.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

12 Dec 22

@LindaOHio I'll do that for sure.

1 person likes this

@LindaOHio (180678)

• United States

11 Dec 22

@JudyEv Me too. Can you post a pic when you see it?

1 person likes this

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@BarBaraPrz (47552)

• St. Catharines, Ontario

10 Dec 22

And stoolies "drop a dime" when ratting on someone, even though payphones (if you can find one) ask for at least a quarter, sometimes two, before working. I wonder how many people will think they've been given a fake coin when they see Chas' profile on the obverse instead of Lizzie's.

2 people like this

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@BarBaraPrz (47552)

• St. Catharines, Ontario

11 Dec 22

@JudyEv I'm not sure, either.

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

I'm wondering how long it will take them before they get some coins into circulation.

1 person likes this

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@snowy22315 (181641)

• United States

10 Dec 22

Cool looking penny, not familiar with the expression though.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

I'm a bit surprised that no-one seems to have heard of it.

1 person likes this

@LadyDuck (471849)

• Switzerland

10 Dec 22

Interesting from how this saying comes. I think that those machines reached Italy a lot later than 1911, I cannot remember we had them when I was young.

2 people like this

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@LadyDuck (471849)

• Switzerland

11 Dec 22

@JudyEv - That is a good thing, they are transforming everything to work with those horrible QR codes and a smartphone, or the contactless credit card.

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

There are still a few things that take coins like parking metres and confectionery-vending machines.

1 person likes this

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@Tampa_girl7 (50429)

• United States

10 Dec 22

That’s a nice looking coin.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

Thanks. It's very old now. No shop would take pennies now.

2 people like this

@Tampa_girl7 (50429)

• United States

10 Dec 22

@JudyEv I wonder if there are any in circulation still.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

@Tampa_girl7 I very much doubt it.

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@Shiva49 (26741)

• Singapore

10 Dec 22

Some phrases have a novel origin that surprises us but they gain currency over time.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

Pennies have just about gone out of the language nowadays although myLot people talk about pennies.

1 person likes this

@RubyHawk (99405)

• Atlanta, Georgia

10 Dec 22

I haven’t heard that expression before. I tried to think of an expression I would use to mean the same thing , but it didn’t come.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

I'm a bit surprised that no-one seems to recognise it.

2 people like this

@RubyHawk (99405)

• Atlanta, Georgia

10 Dec 22

@JudyEv We have a lot of sayings here that people have never heard before.

1 person likes this

@dgobucks226 (35681)

•

10 Dec 22

Very interesting facts about that phrase. Yes, the penny, nickel, dime and quarter are still dropping! When I do self-checkout at the grocery store, they have slots for them. Although parking meters now use printed tickets, phone aps or credit cards to pay.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

Some of our parking metres want coins or at least you can use coins.

1 person likes this

William Sinclair

@Albain (237)

• Edinburgh, Scotland

10 Dec 22

A florin! That's what I used to get for my pocket money when I was a kid - now that brings back a few memories. If I remember rightly a florin was worth two shillings, or 10 pence in today's money. Back in the day my weekly florin would go a lot further that 10p does today!

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

A 10p is hardly worth having these days. Australia went to decimal currency back in 1966. But I remember half-crowns and guineas. Stud stock were always sold in guineas.

@allknowing (137416)

• India

11 Dec 22

Besides the phone booth I got my first experience in Rotterdam where I used the vending machine that dropped candies.

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@allknowing (137416)

• India

11 Dec 22

@JudyEv I said candies - not candles.

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

12 Dec 22

Sorry. I'll blame my multi-focal glasses. I sometimes read stuff wrong. I thought candles seemed a bit strange.

1 person likes this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

11 Dec 22

That's interesting. I've never heard of one that gave candles.

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@jobelbojel (35823)

• Philippines

10 Dec 22

I have learned a new phrase. This is a huge coin. We have new coins.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

We don't have pennies anymore so the phrase has probably gone out of fashion.

1 person likes this

@marlina (154131)

• Canada

10 Dec 22

We will

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

I'm waiting to see what image they use.

1 person likes this

@RasmaSandra (80455)

• Daytona Beach, Florida

10 Dec 22

That is an interesting looking coin, No I have not and had not heard about this phase before,

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

I'm surprised that so far no-one knows of it.

2 people like this

@TheHorse (219719)

• Walnut Creek, California

10 Dec 22

Why a king?

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

Do you mean on the coin in the photo? It's King George V who was king at the time.

2 people like this

@Beestring (14641)

• Hong Kong

10 Dec 22

This phrase is new to me.

2 people like this

@JudyEv (341269)

• Rockingham, Australia

10 Dec 22

I haven't heard it for a while and of course no-one has pennies anymore.

3 people like this