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at the expense of

Idioms  
  1. Also, at one's expense.

  2. Paid for by someone, as in The hotel bill for the sales force is at the expense of the company . [Mid-1600s]

  3. To the detriment or injury of a person or thing, as in We can't speed up production at the expense of quality , or The laughter was all at Tom's expense . [Late 1600s]


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Polymarket has been quiet about its view of this trader, whose profit came at the expense of other traders, who didn’t know that the Maduro operation was in the works.

From Slate

Several clients raised the question of whether this bet was being redefined to benefit “whales,” or big-money gamblers, at the expense of the small fry.

From MarketWatch

Just a third victory of the season for Nantes, Ahmed Kantari's team have provisionally climbed out of the relegation zone at the expense of Auxerre, who play later.

From Barron's

Todd Murphy could come in as a specialist spinner, possibly at the expense of seamer Jhye Richardson.

From BBC

"This really looks like a trade-off, prioritizing what's good for the individual cell to stay alive in a stressful environment, at the expense of what the collective tissue should be doing," Tzouanas says.

From Science Daily