as phony as a three-dollar bill

(as) phony as a three-dollar bill

Completely and obviously false, fake, or illegitimate; not genuine or authentic in the slightest. (There has never been a three-dollar bill in circulation in the United States.) Primarily heard in US. The course claims to teach you how to get rich in a hurry, but I can tell it's as phony as a three-dollar bill. The senator's hammed-up, teary-eyed speech was phony as a three-dollar bill, if you ask me. The guy said he was selling Rolexes, but this thing is as phony as a three-dollar bill.See also: bill, phony

(as) phony as a three-dollar bill

and (as) queer as a three-dollar bill mod. phony; bogus. The whole deal stinks. It’s as queer as a three-dollar bill. Stay away from him. He’s phony as a three-dollar bill. See also: bill, phony