nickel-and-dime

[ nik-uh l-uh n-dahym ]

/ ˈnɪk əl ənˈdaɪm /

Informal.

adjective

of little or no importance; trivial; petty: a nickel-and-dime business that soon folded.

verb (used with object), nick·el-and-dimed or nick·eled-and-dimed, nick·el-and-dim·ing or nick·el·ing-and-dim·ing.

to expose to financial hardship or bankruptcy by the accumulation of small expenses, bills, etc.: We're being nickel-and-dimed to death by these small weekly expenses.

to hinder, annoy, or harass with trivialities or nonessentials: to be nickeled-and-dimed by petty criticisms.

Nearby words

nickel oxide, nickel plate, nickel silver, nickel steel, nickel tetracarbonyl, nickel-and-dime, nickel-cadmium battery, nickel-plate, nickelic, nickelic oxide, nickeliferous

Origin of nickel-and-dime

First recorded in 1965–70