shell out

verb

1. informal,  (adverb) to pay out or hand over (money)

Word History and Origins

Origin of shell out¹

C19: from _shell (in the sense: to remove from a pod or (figuratively) a purse)

Idioms and Phrases

Pay, hand over, as in We had to shell out $1,000 for auto repairs. This expression transfers taking a seed such as a pea or nut out of its pod or shell to taking money out of one's pocket. [Colloquial; c. 1800]