Meaning
Careful over small savings while wasteful or imprudent about much larger costs. Hyphenation varies. It can criticise any small saving that creates disproportionate cost or risk. Regional use: British, with early Scottish and English records; now international English.
Origin
A Scottish manuscript dated before about 1598 has 'Pennie wyse pund fool'. Francis Meres's 1598 English version of The sinners guyde prints the exact penny wise and pound foolish form and calls it an existing saying; Edward Topsell supplies a detailed false-economy example in his 1607 Historie of Foure-footed Beastes. Penny and pound contrast small and large sums, but the warning readily extends beyond money to misplaced attention and short-sighted economy.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- Pennie wise and pound foolish
- Penny wise, pound foolish
Usage Examples
- Buying the cheapest seals every month is penny wise and pound foolish.
- The council was penny-wise and pound-foolish when it cancelled routine bridge inspections.
- Do not be penny wise and pound foolish by saving on backups and risking the archive.