nickel and dime
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nickel and dime¹
- /ˌnɪkəl ən ˈdaɪm/ US
Where it comes from
From the names of two US coins of small value.
adjective
verb nickel and dimes · nickels and dimes · nickel and diming · nickeling and diming · nickelling and diming · nickel and dimed
- To charge, or be charged, several unexpected small amounts of money, often in the form of fees, taxes, or related expenses to a venture, which when taken as a whole add up to a significant unexpected cost. I got nickel and dimed to death by the phone company's sneaky extra charges.
- To wear down in small increments; to quibble or obsess endlessly with (someone) over trifles.
nickel and dime²
- /ˌnɪkəl ən ˈdaɪm/ US
Where it comes from
From prison or criminal slang.
noun
- Fifteen years.
nickel and dime³
- /ˌnɪkəl ən ˈdaɪm/ US
Where it comes from
After retail stores where "everything costs a nickel or a dime".
noun nickel and dimes
-
A retail store selling inexpensive items, especially (originally, formerly) one in which all items had a price near a nickel (US five cents) or a dime (US ten cents).
Near-synonym: dollar store (idiomatically synonymous in the 21st century)
Similar: five and ten, five-and-dime, five and dime, dollar store
Talk about this word "nickel and dime." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/nickel%20and%20dime. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. nickel and dime. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/nickel%20and%20dime "nickel and dime." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/nickel%20and%20dime.Cite this
@misc{nickel_and_dime_2026,
title = {nickel and dime},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/nickel%20and%20dime},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
