penny ante
noun
a game of poker in which the ante or basic bet is one cent.
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penny ante
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penny-ante
penny-anteadjectiveinvolving a trifling sum of money; small in amount.
penny ante
1 Americannoun
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Cards. a game of poker in which the ante or basic bet is one cent.
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Informal. any business arrangement or transaction involving a trifling or paltry sum of money.
penny-ante
2
American
[pen-ee-an-tee]
/ ˈpɛn iˈæn ti /
adjective
Informal.
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involving a trifling sum of money; small in amount.
a penny-ante investment.
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inconsiderable; minor; small-time.
Etymology
Origin of penny ante1
An Americanism dating back to 1850–55
Origin of penny-ante2
An Americanism dating back to 1930–35
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
And yes, it was penny ante, another irony.
From Slate ● Mar. 29, 2021
The example of this article deals with lobsters - pretty penny ante stuff - but the principles apply to all trade.
From New York Times ● Nov. 12, 2017
The Watergate investigation took two years, and it was of a penny ante burglary down the street from the White House.
From New York Times ● Nov. 3, 2017
Commented one writer to an Edinburgh newspaper: The market is worth maybe $2 billion a year, which in Detroit's terms is penny ante.
From Time Magazine Archive
The limit was set at ten cents, and it was to be a regular penny ante game.
From Frank Merriwell's Chums by Burt L. Standish
Its theme was that penny-ante contributions to local charitable institutions was as nothing, compared to the moral imperative to make as much money as one could, and then give it away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2024
As far as they're concerned, this is penny-ante stuff hardly even worth talking about.
From Salon ● Dec. 7, 2022
Huge losses leading to penny-ante tax payments isn’t a good look.
From Fox News ● Sep. 28, 2020
Bad manners, naked selfishness, penny-ante nitpicking and ham-fisted abuse of power will make club life obsolete for anybody under 50 faster than you can say “OK, Boomer.”
From Golf Digest ● Mar. 2, 2020
But those penny-ante squares who came in there putting on their millionaires’ airs, the young ones and the old ones both, only annoyed me.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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