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rake-off
[ reyk-awf, -of ]
noun
- a share or amount taken or received illicitly, as in connection with a public enterprise.
- a share, as of profits.
- a discount in the price of a commodity:
We got a 20 percent rake-off on the dishwasher.
rake-off
noun
- a share of profits, esp one that is illegal or given as a bribe
verb
- tr, adverb to take or receive (such a share of profits)
Word History and Origins
Origin of rake-off1
Idioms and Phrases
Make an unlawful profit, as in They suspected her of raking off some of the campaign contributions for her personal use . This expression alludes to the raking of chips by an attendant at a gambling table. [Late 1800s]Example Sentences
The Belgians place no limit upon the number of elephants one may shoot, just so they get their rake-off.
They have jobbed public works and pocketed a "rake-off" on all municipal supplies.
And what did he mean by his observation that there was no rake-off on the wanagan?
So you think there ain't going to be any rake-off on the wanagan?
From various dealers this chauffeur obtained a rake-off on every gallon of gasoline used, and on the purchase of new tires, etc.
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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.
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