It just bothers me...

while I agree that newbs and amateurs can be frustrating, isn't it more problematic that the company that manufactures it doesn't refer to it by the proper name?

 

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and I am BOTH... just ask my kids

 

Hey old guy? what does crotchety mean?

 

I blame the internet in general and social media in particular for expediting the pernicious spread of stupidity in the modern world.

 

Penny...
Penny...
Penny...
and my 3 favorite Penny's

 

It isn't spreading it. It only illuminates what already exists for the world to see.

 

Yeah true. But dont forget the distruibution companis like Brinks. They lable their rolls as pennies as well.

 

A penny for your thoughts. Just putting in my two cents.

 

I got a penny today that looked strange and it had a terrible scent.

 

Do you remember when Thom McAn used to sell penny loafers? I'll bet they would have sold like hotcakes if they had called them cented loafers.

Chris

 

I had some "scented" loafers... but that's a different story!

 

Hm. The all-knowing, all seeing, beyond omniscient Wikipedia has this to say about the word "Penny" -

"A penny is a coin (pl. pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (whence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is the formal name of the British penny (abbr. p) and the informal name of one American cent (abbr. ¢) as well as the informal Irish designation of 1 cent euro coin (abbr. c). It is the informal name of the cent unit of account in Canada, although one cent coins are no longer minted there.[1] The name is also used in reference to various historical currencies also derived from the Carolingian system, such as the French denier and the German pfennig. It may also be informally used to refer to any similar smallest-denomination coin, such as the euro cent or Chinese fen."

and onwards:

"Penny is first attested in a 1394 Scots text,[n 1] a variant of Old English peni, a development of numerous variations including pennig, penning, and pending.[n 2] The etymology of the term "penny" is uncertain, although cognates are common across almost all Germanic languages[n 3] and suggest a base *pan-, *pann-, or *pand- with the individualizing suffix -ing."

and more:

"The U.S. Mint's official name for the coin is "cent"[1] and the U.S. Treasury's official name is "one cent piece".[2] The colloquial term penny derives from the British coin of the same name, the pre-decimal version of which had a similar place in the British system. In American English, pennies is the plural form. (The plural form pence—standard in British English—is not used in American English, except in reference to British currency.)"

That last paragraph's first sentence is interesting given the Mint's overt use of "penny" in the literature cited. Ultimately, or at least on Wikipedia, the word seems a little buried in the nebulous past. If the word can mean "the smallest denomination in a currency system" then calling the US Cent a "penny" seems fine. And calling it a "Cent," derived from Latin "Centum" or 100, seems perfectly accurate as well, referring to the fractional 1/100. So overall, is there really a problem, especially informally, referring to a Cent as either a "penny" or a "cent?" Is there anything definitive on the difference? I don't know, I'm asking.

 

I do remember penny loafers, but that doesn't make any sense in this discussion...

 

Go back and read the thread. It's all in fun.

 

No it doesn't. Especially since I placed dimes, instead of cents, into the crevice.......

 

crevasse

 

I've only used a penny in the fuse box.......

 

I have used a penny when giving a tip!!!

 

Penny Nails! Oh, are we still doing that? What a fun thread to read! So what's a Pence? I have a ten pee coin, hee hee hee, I said PEE