a person who seeks or digs for gold in a gold field.
Informal. a woman who associates with or marries a man chiefly for material gain.
a person who prospects or digs for gold
informal a woman who uses her sexual attractions to accumulate gifts and wealth or advance her social position
An Americanism dating back to 1820–30
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Julia, a successful businesswoman in textile design, knows that her father will be alarmed at this impetuous engagement and will want to make sure that Johnny isn’t a gold digger.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026
Or the time when she filed a trademark application for the term "gold digger".
From BBC ● Jan. 28, 2026
Despite the duplex, Ferrari, Bentleys and various expensive baubles he has showered upon her, she seems too delusional and naive to be called a gold digger.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2024
In the first season, they treat her as if she’s a gold digger.
From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2023
I look around the room for Darius, to see if there’s any hint that he might’ve heard what Layla just said about Janae being a gold digger.
From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi
I didn’t call her a gold-digger, but I do think what he has and chooses to give to his children should be none of her business.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 13, 2026
"You think - is this is how people are perceiving us? When they say nasty things about him or call me a gold-digger, it irritates me."
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025
And he even characterized Heard as a "gold-digger," a "narcissist" and a sociopath.
From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2022
Patrizia comes across like a bit of gold-digger.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 22, 2021
They went on, and Cyril tried to think out a scheme for making his fortune as a gold-digger at Klondyke, and then buying all the caged birds in the world and setting them free.
From The Story of the Amulet by Nesbit, E. (Edith)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
