pocketbook
Americannoun
-
a small bag or case for money, papers, etc, carried by a handle or in the pocket
-
(modifier) concerned with personal finance
pocketbook issues
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pocketbook
Explanation
Pocketbook is another name for a purse or wallet, a place to keep money or other essentials. Pocketbook can also refer to the amount of money you have, even if it’s in your mattress. In the UK, pocketbook is a pocket-sized notebook, but in the US it's usually a small bag typically carried by women. Figuratively, your pocketbook is your budget: "Those shoes are way too expensive for my pocketbook." In the early 1600s, a pocketbook was "a book small enough to fit in a pocket," and by 1722 it became "a booklike leather folder for papers." In the early 1800s, it came to mean "woman's handbag."
Vocabulary lists containing pocketbook
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:
All of it, unfortunately, has been passed down to your pocketbook in one form or another.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
Curtis Carmichael III, 35, said he votes with his pocketbook and has backed candidates from both parties.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026
“Broader electorates require democracy narratives grounded in pocketbook realities.”
From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2026
But they’re also taking fresh inspiration from Mamdani’s win, pointing to his inclusive, unapologetic campaign and his relentless focus on pocketbook issues, particularly among working-class voters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2025
“I needed another nickel for the gas man and I thought you wouldn’t care. You look in my pocketbook for change many a time.”
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
The Council of the District of Columbia in 2025 rolled back a voter-approved increase in the tipped wage minimum after restaurant customers and tipped workers decried the resulting blow to their pocketbooks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026
It’s how long some can keep winning in the next few months, as larger tax refunds start to hit consumers’ pocketbooks.
From Barron's ● Feb. 17, 2026
“We understand that people understand, as people look at their pocketbooks to go to the grocery store, that there’s still work to do,” Hassett said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2025
But was this a true bridge-too-far-moment, or were they more concerned about their own pocketbooks?
From Slate ● Nov. 8, 2025
A small cluster of older ladies clutching pocketbooks, their hair carefully coiffed, probably on a shopping expedition from some province or suburb, smile and coo when he tinkles the opening of “Moonlight Serenade.”
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
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.
