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Synonyms

on a dime

Idioms  

  1. In a very small space, suddenly, as in That horse is so well trained it can turn on a dime. This expression alludes to the fact that the dime is the smallest-size U.S. coin. [Early 1900s]

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.

The stock market’s day-to-day narrative can change on a dime, and this week’s theme of a pullback in precious metals and bitcoin continued early on Thursday.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 5, 2026

For starters, auto makers can’t shift production or plans on a dime.

From Barron's • Dec. 4, 2025

"Companies can't move on a dime; there are incentives to keep supply chains in place and it's extremely complicated and costly to change things."

From BBC • Nov. 10, 2025

But it’s also what made Candy so beloved: As funny as he was, he could turn on a dime to remind us that even the grandest personalities are human at their core.

From Salon • Oct. 12, 2025

Equipped with reflexes much faster than those of the most quick-wired man, he swoops over as much as twenty-eight feet of earth in a single stride, and corners on a dime.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

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.