cash cow

noun

Informal.

1. any business venture, operation, or product that is a dependable source of income or profit.

cash cow

noun

1. a product, acquisition, etc, that produces a steady flow of cash, esp one with a well-known brand name commanding a high market share

Idioms and Phrases

A dependable source of profit, as in The small-appliance division is this company's cash cow. Although this precise term dates only from about 1970, milch cow was used in exactly the same way from 1601.

Example Sentences

The gin producer said the spirits industry was being "used as a bit of a cash cow for the government".

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If Rachel makes his film, she’ll become a combo platter of his mother, his daughter, his protégée and his cash cow.

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The group’s cash cow was up against a challenging comparison base after sales more-than doubled in last year’s third quarter.

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Hollywood comedies were a cash cow for years, but they’ve run up against a number of hurdles.

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A decentralized, low-cost, flexible cottage industry will likely be transformed into a centralized, high-cost, inflexible cash cow for the merchants of death.

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Related Words

• moneymaker