prime cost

American  

noun

1. that part of the cost of a commodity deriving from the labor and materials directly utilized in its manufacture.

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prime cost British  

noun

1. Also called: variable cost. the portion of the cost of a commodity that varies directly with the amount of it produced, principally comprising materials and labour Compare overheads

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Etymology

Origin of prime cost

First recorded in 1710–20

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prime cost

Labor is indeed a prime cost factor in an industry that has never been able to mechanize to any great extent.

From Time Magazine Archive

They thus get these better freights and a large number of immigrants, which with small interest on prime cost enables them to live.

From Ocean Steam Navigation and the Ocean Post by Thomas Rainey

His lordship at one time shipped a large quantity of warming pans to the West Indies, where they were sold at a great advance on prime cost, and used for molasses ladles.

From The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun; containing a collection of over one thousand of the most laughable sayings and jokes of celebrated wits and humorists. by Various

The prime cost and repairs are by no means so great when engines are duplicated, or two sets built from the same patterns.

From Ocean Steam Navigation and the Ocean Post by Thomas Rainey

An addition to the price; rise in price or value; as, an advance on the prime cost of goods.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Noah Webster

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