free lunch

American

noun

food provided without charge in some bars and saloons to attract customers.
Informal. something given with no expectation of repayment, service, responsibility, etc..

In politics there's no free lunch—everyone expects favors to be repaid.

free lunch Idioms

Something acquired without due effort or cost. For example, In politics there is no free lunch; every favor calls for repayment. This expression alludes to the custom of taverns offering food free of charge to induce customers to buy drinks. It was soon extended to other kinds of gift but is often used in a negative way, as in the example. [First half of 1800s]

Etymology

Origin of free lunch

First recorded in 1835–45

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:

free lunch

As Patti summarized it, "there is no free lunch" when searching for sugar alternatives, particularly when several metabolic pathways can ultimately lead toward liver dysfunction.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026

There's no such thing as a free lunch, unless you're a Hollywood A-lister who's nominated for an Oscar.

From BBC ● Feb. 11, 2026

Most experts agree that the biggest free lunch from Wall Street is diversification.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 5, 2026

“There’s no free lunch, there’s no magic wand that makes all the problems go away,” said Fervo CEO Tim Latimer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026

It didn't mean they got free lunch because they were special.

From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds

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