The new TV cost me a pretty penny but it's worth it.

[alpacinou]

Is the expression 'cost a pretty penny' still used? How common is it? Are these correct and natural?

1. The new TV cost me a pretty penny but it's worth it, to be fair.
2. Hiring a new lawyer will cost the company a pretty penny but they have no other choice.
3. The war has cost the country a pretty penny but the president has yet to prove it is justifiable.
4. This new policy will cost medical companies a pretty penny, so they are certain to challenge it.

 

[Skrej]

Is the expression 'cost a pretty penny' still used? How common is it? Are these correct and natural?

1. The new TV cost me a pretty penny, but it's worth it, to be fair.
2. Hiring a new lawyer will cost the company a pretty penny, but they have no other choice.
3. The war has cost the country a pretty penny, but the president has yet to prove it is justifiable.
4. This new policy will cost medical companies a pretty penny, so they are certain to challenge it.

It is. Common enough. They are, with noted punctuation corrections.

 

[Tarheel]

In my humble opinion, "but" is the wrong word in sentence #3. (See below.)

The war has cost the country a pretty penny, and the president has yet to prove it is justifiable.

It's an expression I haven't heard in a long time. However, context should indicate what it means.

 

[PeterCW]

It's an expression I haven't heard in a long time. However, context should indicate what it means.

It's an expression that I would associate more with my parents' generation.

 

[alpacinou]

It's an expression that I would associate more with my parents' generation.

So, was it used in British English as well?
One dictionary said it was American English.

 

[PeterCW]

So, was it used in British English as well?
One dictionary said it was American English.

I have never regarded it as an Americanism.