hill of beans

American  

noun

Informal.

1. something of trifling value; virtually nothing at all.

   The problem didn't amount to a hill of beans.

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Etymology

Origin of hill of beans

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hill of beans

The authors have the temerity to report that urban community gardens, those itty-bitty lots where neighbors grow snap peas and the like, don’t amount to a hill of beans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026

Next to all that, a rocky relationship styled into an on-and-off situationship for a reality TV subplot is the proverbial hill of beans Rick Blaine mentioned in “Casablanca.”

From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2026

Moral victories don’t amount to a hill of beans in the NFL, but players see the upcoming schedule starting with the Bears and know this is the time to stack wins.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 4, 2023

“It won’t amount to a hill of beans for the fifth-largest economy in the world,” says finance department spokesman H.D.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 28, 2022

“And—I’m so sorry, Delsie—they took some of your mother’s things. Jewelry. Pins. Old coins. Lots of stuff that wouldn’t mean a hill of beans to other people but us.”

From "Shouting at the Rain" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt