Synonyms

cover charge

American

noun

a fee, in addition to the cost of food and drink, charged by a restaurant, nightclub, etc., for entertainment.

cover charge British

noun

a sum of money charged in a restaurant for each individual customer in addition to the cost of food and drink

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cover charge

An Americanism dating back to 1920–25

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.

See Examples For:

cover charge

I understand where she’s coming from, but I can’t help feeling like it’s a bit ridiculous to essentially require an $80 cover charge for your birthday party.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

Seeing the cover charge reduced “showed that we do have a say in how this club operates, and we’re hoping to see a lot more steps in a better direction,” Lillith says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2023

There's a cover charge for show nights, but bowling is reasonable if you have a group, as it's only $35 per lane, per half hour.

From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2023

While diners with reservations don’t have to pay the show’s cover charge to eat upstairs, it might be loud.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 4, 2022

It is only 135 hours until we are all standing at the door of Atlantis again with our cover charge in our palms.

From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023