nickel and dime
/ˌnɪkəl ən ˈdaɪm/
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.43 in modern English
Meaning
adj
Small time; operating on a small scale; involving small amounts of money; petty or cheap.
American usage; Colloquial
verb
To charge, or be charged, several unexpected small amounts of money, often in the form of fees, taxes, or related expenses to a venture, which when taken as a whole add up to a significant unexpected cost.
American usage; Colloquial
verb
To wear down in small increments; to quibble or obsess endlessly with (someone) over trifles.
American usage; Colloquial
noun
A retail store selling inexpensive items, especially (originally, formerly) one in which all items had a price near a nickel (US five cents) or a dime (US ten cents).
Canadian usage; American usage; Dated
Example Sentences
- "Near-synonyms: two-bit, ten-cent"
- "I bought my new ride from some nickel and dime used-car salesman."
- "Don't waste your time with that; their operations are nickel and dime."
- "I got nickel and dimed to death by the phone company's sneaky extra charges."
- "It seems like a great offer, but they will just nickel and dime you until you've spent more than retail anyway."
- "Even as resort fees are under fire, the nickel-and-diming of travelers that airlines have adopted is seeping into hotel operations. Things that used to be complimentary, such as early check-in or late check-out, now often carry associated fees."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌnɪkəl ən ˈdaɪm/