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]

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Example Sentences

They avoid hospitals, often at the expense of their own family’s health.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

“Companies are shifting budgets toward AI investments at the expense of jobs,” Challenger says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Higher rates make yield-bearing assets like Treasury bonds more attractive at the expense of gold.

From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026

Burden internalized this pattern, of foregrounding the importance of the paterfamilias at the expense of real intimacy, of keeping up appearances despite the private pain.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026

Perhaps we may have noticed an oddly shaped insect of ferocious mien on a bush in the garden and been dimly aware that the praying mantis lives at the expense of other insects.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson