Bad penny

The full expression is a bad penny always turns up where a bad penny is an unwanted, no-good person who will always make repeated appearances and intrusions. In this form and meaning, the expression is thought to be of American origin with its first citation from the Adams Family Correspondence (1766). Much later, Sir Walter Scott also used the expression in one of his early 19th century novels but he substituted shilling for penny. Many different coin denominations were substituted in various forms of the expression. For example, in America, a bad nickel would always turn up. There was, however, a much earlier English expression, where a bad penny meant a counterfeit penny that was literally worthless and unwanted. As with all counterfeit coins circulated in relatively small communities, it would keep on turning up. This literal meaning is very old, probably as old as the English penny itself, which dates from the 8th century. Pennies and other coins were also offered as sacrifices, for example in wishing wells, and if the wish was not granted, it was put down to a bad or counterfeit penny. Very often, a literal meaning can evolve into a figurative meaning and this is probably the case with a bad or counterfeit penny.