very low-priced.
noticeably lacking in quality; inferior.
First recorded in 1895–1900
First recorded in 1955–60
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The business model that once made it an industry maverick—bringing its brand of bargain basement fares coupled with fees for pretty much everything—faced pressure from more intense competition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
One veteran value fund manager thinks so, but he’s quick to point out that value doesn’t have to mean unloved stocks that are trading at bargain basement prices.
From Barron's ● Apr. 7, 2026
You got on the property ladder at a bargain basement price, and doubled down on that cost effectiveness by building a house.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 10, 2026
Chris Edwards, a businessman from Yorkshire, has spent more than 50 years working in retail's bargain basement.
From BBC ● Nov. 20, 2025
When Mama took us to the bargain basement sales in the Loveman’s and Pizitz department stores, we never asked why we couldn’t try on clothes.
From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry
In this case, given how much your home has appreciated over the years, I don’t recommend selling this to your daughter at a bargain-basement price.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 22, 2025
On Facebook Marketplace, he tries to buy more overstock, such as cans of P&G’s Febreze room spray that he purchases at bargain-basement prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2025
Struggling California vineyards are having to compete with bargain-basement wine prices from overseas growers, due to global oversupply.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2024
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal ran down a list of recent, bargain-basement office sales.
From Slate ● May 26, 2023
So who's coming in on the bargain-basement floor?
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 159, September 22, 1920 by Seaman, Owen, Sir
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
