50+ Money Idioms: Meanings, Examples, and How to Use Them
Life experiences usually find their way to make a mark in languages, so it’s only natural that money and its concept are incorporated into it.
Every culture has proverbs and idioms tied to wealth, poverty, or survival.
Everything surrounding money, from discussing wealth, budgets, investments, financial struggles, and savings, have idioms that express those ideas.
Idioms about money are present everywhere: at home, business meetings, storytelling, social media, books, movies, and day-to-day conversations.
For English learners, understanding these expressions is essential!
Money idioms can help you understand the cultural attitudes surrounding money, as well as making your speech sound much more natural.
Table of Contents
So, let’s cut to the chase:
What are Money Idioms?
Money idioms are phrases that help you understand and express interpretations about money.
Let’s get into the ‘money idiom’ mood with two classic examples that are very common to hear in daily life:
- Time is money, which means that time is of the essence, highly valuable, and shouldn’t be wasted.
- Money talks, which means that financial decisions speak of the waster’s/spender’s character and/or investment.
Like these, there are plenty of other money idioms that reflect different meanings.
Let’s chase the gold together!
+30 Common Money Idioms: Meanings and Sentences
Because money affects nearly every aspect of life, English has developed hundreds of idioms that reflect attitudes toward work, success, spending, saving, and happiness.
Money Idioms about Finance
| Money Idiom | Meaning | Sentence Example |
| Money doesn’t grow on trees | Money is limited and should be spent carefully/mindfully, not carelessly. | Stop buying things you don’t need, money doesn’t grow on trees! |
| Cash cow | A business, service, product, or investment that generated steady profit. | The laundromat became a cash cow for her business, she might retire earlier than she expected. |
| In the red | Losing money, going through a financial loss, and having a negative balance in your account. | After a few unlucky slow months, the small start-up business was still in the red and struggling to cover its expenses. |
| In the black | To have more money coming in than coming out, profitable, financially stable, and healthy. | Thanks to the Christmas season, the bakery entered the new year in the black after months of struggles. |
| Throw money at something | Spending money mindlessly, without any intentional thought to resolve a problem. | The company can’t solve every issue simply by throwing money at it. |
Money Idioms about Making Money
| Money Idiom | Meaning | Sentence Example |
| Rags to riches | Going from a position of poverty to one of great wealth. | After writing Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling went from rags to riches after the book’s success. |
| Make a killing | Earn a lot of money very quickly. | They made a killing selling brownies at midnight on campus, everyone is always up for a sweet. |
| Money-spinner | Something that consistently generates income. | Being an Uber driver became a money-spinner during the weekends. |
| Bring home the bacon | Earning money to support your household and/or family. | My mother always worked hard to bring home the bacon. |
| Making the big bucks | To earn a considerably big amount of money. | After he quit his corporate job and started working freelance, he started making the big bucks. |
Money Idioms about Saving Money
| Money Idiom | Meaning | Sentence Example |
| Pinching pennies | Spending money very mindfully and carefully. | At the end of the month, he’s always pinching pennies. |
| Nest egg | Saving money as a guarantee for the future, or an emergency. | I’m lucky to have set up a healthy nest egg for my retirement. |
| Tighten your belt | Reducing expenses because money is ‘tight’, or limited. | When a wave of economic downturn came years ago, even wealthy families had to tighten their belts. |
| Cutting corners | Saving money by reducing costs, doing things more cheaply or lowering quality. | Instead of her usual Starbucks cappuccino, she brewed herself an americano at home to cut some corners. |
Money Idioms about Spending Money
| Money Idiom | Meaning | Sentence Example |
| Break the bank | Regarding something that costs more than what you can comfortably afford. | A summer vacation doesn’t have to break the bank, there are cheap options if you know where to look. |
| Pay through the nose | Pay way more than it is worth. | We paid through the nose for coffee at the airport. |
| Live beyond your means | Spend more than you earn. | He’s drowning in debt for living beyond his means. |
| On a shoestring budget | Operating with a very limited budget. | The business started in her garage with a shoestring budget. |
Money Idioms about Happiness
| Money Idiom | Meaning | Sentence Example |
| Money can’t buy happiness | Wealth can’t guarantee fulfillment or true joy. | His parents were rich and busy, and yet he still felt really lonely as a child, which is why money can’t buy happiness. |
| On cloud nine | Extremely happy. | She was on cloud nine after receiving her Christmas bonus. |
| Feeling/looking like a million bucks | Feeling super confident, attractive, and amazing. | She felt like a million bucks after winning the spelling bee.He always makes sure to look like a million bucks before going out on a date. |
| Happy as a clam | Happy, satisfied, enjoying themselves. | She was happy as a clam the day she got her promotion. |
Conclusion
Money idioms are among the most commonly used expressions in English!
Whether you’re discussing finances, describing success, talking about saving money, or expressing happiness, these phrases can make your English sound more fluent and natural.
Also, you’ll understand a cultural subtext that’s part of everyday life. Idioms are a fun tool for better integration!
So… it’s
QUIZ TIME!
Match each idiom to its meaning.
Idioms:
- Pinch pennies
- Cash cow
- Make a killing
- Break the bank
- On a shoestring budget
Meanings:
a. Earn a lot of money quickly
b. Spend money very carefully
c. Costs too much…
d. A reliable source of profit
e. Operate with very little money
Take all the time you need to complete it! You could also reread the article and come back to this once you’re ready.
Learning takes practice!
If you wish to know more about idioms, you’ll be happy to find our other articles covering other kinds of idioms.
[Answers: 1-b, 2-d, 3-a, 4-c, 5-e]
References: https://englishlanguageandliterature.com/?s=money&id=15510
