Something that is very common, plentiful, or of little value because it's so easily found. It describes things or people that lack rarity or special worth.
This American phrase emerged in the 1930s during the Great Depression when a dime had significant purchasing power. The expression originally referred to items so cheap and abundant that you could buy twelve of them for just ten cents, emphasizing their low individual value.
The phrase is a perfect linguistic time capsule of Depression-era economics when a dime was substantial money but could still buy a dozen of something worthless. Today, when a dime barely buys anything, the phrase has become more metaphorical, but it still carries that original sense of abundance making something valueless.
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