When you use “penny for your thoughts”, you’re simply telling the person to tell you what they are thinking or what’s going on in their mind.
It can be used when someone hasn’t spoken much about a particular subject matter. Saying this is simply asking for the person’s opinion.
You’re simply requesting someone else’s thoughts on a certain thing. The phrase is mostly used when you want to hear someone out or know what they think concerning a particular thing.
When someone says this to you, it means the person wants to know what you think concerning a certain issue.
A similar phrase to “penny for your thoughts” is; “What’s on your mind? By saying this you only want to know what the person is thinking or contemplating.”
Also, you can say, “May I know what you’re thinking?” instead of “Penny for your thoughts” and/or “A penny saved is a penny earned”.
20 Similar Phrases to “Penny for your thoughts”
- What’s on your mind?
- May I know what you’re thinking?
- A penny saved is a penny earned
- A bad penny always turns up
- As clean as a new penny
- A light bulb moment
- Ring a bell
- As swift as thought
- A second thought
- A sobering thought
- On my mind
- In the dark
- Spill the tea
- Keep one’s mouth sealed
- Let the cat out of the bag
- To put one’s thinking cap on
- Rack your brain
- Lost in thought
- Figure something out
- Read one’s mind
What’s on your mind?
By saying this you only want to know what the person is thinking or contemplating. You’re interested in knowing what is occupying someone’s mind at the moment.
This could be said as a result of concern or worry. It could be that the person is worried about you and decides to ask this question.
When you’re being asked this, someone wants you to talk about what is bothering you or troubling you.
May I know what you’re thinking?
This phrase is a polite way of asking someone for their thought on something. You’re requesting to know what a person is deliberating on.
This is a polite way of telling someone that you’re interested in knowing their thoughts. It shows and conveys your interest in knowing what a person thinks.
With this question, the person can decide to let you know or not.
A penny saved is a penny earned
This phrase is like “Penny for your thought” but it doesn’t convey the same meaning. “A penny saved is a penny earned” is an idiom that means it is good to save money.
This means that it is useful and wise to save money. It could also mean that it is important for a person to save money.
It is a way of saying that saving money is like earning money because you’d have to earn more by saving. The similarity between the phrases is the word “penny.”
A bad penny always turns up
This is another similar phrase that means a person that is not welcome will always show up. It means that someone you don’t like will always return.
This phrase can be used for someone you don’t like, you see the person as a penny because they always appear in unwanted situations.
A bad penny is simply someone that’s not welcomed in a certain place. Not only that, the person keeps reappearing at times when there are not needed.
As clean as a new penny
This is a similar phrase that means that something is very clean. It simply means a thing is extremely clean or the thing is spotless.
When you request that something should be as clean as a new penny, you’re requesting that such a thing be clean and shiny.
It shows that you do not expect to see any spots or dirt on it. The similarity between this phrase and “Penny for your thought” is the word “Penny.”
A light bulb moment
A light bulb moment can be said to be a moment of realization. It is a moment of sudden inspiration. It is a symbol of new ideas.
It is a period where you suddenly realize or understand something. Probably, you’ve been finding it difficult to understand a particular thing and now you do.
It could also mean that a new idea just popped up in your head. What makes this similar to a person’s thought is that it refers to a person having a thought or thinking of something.
Ring a bell
This phrase means that something sounds familiar. Whenever something rings a bell, it probably reminds you of something, though you can’t seem to remember what exactly that thing is.
This means that something sounds like you’ve heard it before but you can’t place where or what time. This phrase can be used to awaken a person’s memory or make the person remember something.
As swift as thought
“As swift as thought” means something is very swift or that it happens quickly. It means something happened without delay. It could also mean very fast.
When you use this phrase for someone, you’re telling the person to do something very fast. This phrase is like “penny for your thoughts” because it encompasses the word “thought” in it.
A second thought
By using this phrase, you’re simply saying that there is a change of opinion. It shows that there has been a think-over or review of certain things.
It shows that you know to see something in a different light other than you did at first. You changed your mind concerning a specific thing or you decided to reconsider it.
It shows that you’ve had a rethink about a certain thing or you want to think twice about it. This phrase is like “penny for your thoughts” because it encompasses the word “thought” in it.
A sobering thought
The phrase is often used to describe a serious situation. You can use this phrase when something becomes serious or makes you thoughtful.
It means that something is making you think seriously. You’re giving more thought to a certain thing or you’re being serious about it.
This phrase is like “penny for your thoughts” because it encompasses the word “thought” in it.
On my mind
This expression means that something is preoccupying a person’s thoughts. It means the person is actively thinking about it.
It could also be used when you’re worried about something or concerned. This means that you think a lot. You’re letting someone know that something is occupying your thoughts.
What makes it similar to “penny for your thoughts” is that it refers to someone’s thinking or what is going through a person’s mind.
In the dark
This phrase shows a state of ignorance towards something. It shows that someone is not informed about a certain thing.
It shows that the person is oblivious to what you’re saying. It shows that the person is uninformed about something that can be useful or something really important.
It could also mean that you’re withholding a piece of particular information about something or someone. A person is unaware of what to do r what to expect.
Spill the tea
An alternative phrase for this is “spill the beans.” This expression is often used as an encouragement for one to gossip.
It is been used when someone is being told to share another person’s personal information.
The person is simply telling you to share gossip or reveal gossip. In other words, you’re using this expression to tell someone to disclose a piece of information to you.
It is like a “penny for your thoughts” because it encourages a person to tell you what they are thinking.
Keep one’s mouth sealed
The expression is used to tell someone to keep a secret. It is used to also tell someone not to talk about something.
It is a simple way to tell someone to keep a secret. You’re telling the person not to reveal confidential information.
This phrase is the opposite of “penny for your thoughts” because, unlike a penny for your thoughts, you’re telling the person to keep his thought a secret or not to talk about it.
You’re simply telling the person to say nothing or refrain from speaking about something.
Let the cat out of the bag
It is like a “penny for your thoughts” because it encourages a person to tell you what they are thinking or reveal something.
The phrase means that you want the person to disclose a secret. You want a particular thing to be known.
To let the cat out of the bag is to tell a person something that was meant to be secret. You reveal a secret that was meant to be kept to yourself.
To put one’s thinking cap on
This expression is used when someone wants to think of what should be done about something. You want the person to think seriously about something to help with a piece of certain information.
You need the person to try to solve a problem by thinking about it. You need the individual to attempt to think through an issue and find a solution.
The expression is similar to “penny for your thoughts” because it refers to a person trying to think.
Rack your brain
The expression means that you want the person to make an effort to think. You want someone to try and remember a particular thing.
With this statement, the person is meant to think hard or give much thought to something. You expect that someone strains the brain to come up with a piece of information.
The expression is similar to “penny for your thoughts” because it involves a person’s thoughts. The phrase indicates that you want the other person to try to think.
You want someone to make an effort to recall a certain detail.
Lost in thought
To be lost in thought means to think deeply about something without paying much attention to other things. You’re simply giving all your attention to that which you’re thinking about.
This phrase means that you’re thinking about something hard. It shows that you’re occupied with your thought. You can use “penny for your thought” to ask a person who is lost in thought.
Simply put, you’re focusing only on what you’re thinking about. This expression indicates that you are considering something really difficult. It demonstrates that you are preoccupied with thought.
Figure something out
This expression is used when you want to solve a problem. It can also be used to discover the answer to a particular question.
You’re searching for the solution to a specific problem after having a lot of thought on it. When you wish to find a solution to an issue, you can utilize this phrase.
You’ve given a certain problem a lot of attention, and now you’re looking for the answer.
Read one’s mind
To read a person’s mind is to know exactly what a person is thinking. It means without a person telling you, you can know what they’re thinking about. Without the person saying it, you can know about their thought.
You can simply deduce or guess a person’s thoughts without the person saying them to you. Knowing exactly what a person is thinking means being able to read their mind.
It implies that you can find out what someone is thinking without them telling you. You may easily infer or speculate what someone is thinking without them explicitly communicating it to you.
Wrapping Up
This article has examined some phrases that are quite similar to “penny for your thoughts” which can be used for different scenarios. =
These expressions are like “penny for your thoughts”, though they may not convey the same meaning as it.