impecunious -- Willie

im·pe·cu·ni·ous (mp-kyn-s) adj. Lacking money; penniless. See Synonyms at poor. [in- + pecunious, rich (from Middle English, from Old French pecunios, from Latin pecnisus, from pecnia, money, wealth; see peku- in Indo-European roots).] impe·cuni·ous·ly adv. impe·cuni·ous·ness, impe·cuni·osi·ty (-s-t) n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

 

Neither impecunious nor penurious, Willie pinches his pennies because he's heard that it cost two cents to make one penny (which is no longer copper), so he predicts that pennies will go extinct, and that his collection will therefore be worth even more than two cents per penny.