Idioms are fun phrases that mean something different from the literal words you say. People use them every day to make talking and writing much more colorful and exciting. In this lesson, you will learn a wonderful collection of idioms related to money, saving coins, and buying things.
In this lesson, we’ll look at idioms for money that mean spending cash, saving coins, and being wealthy. Let’s get started and explore some of these helpful expressions.
Idioms for Money
1. Cost an arm and a leg
Meaning: This idiom means something is extremely expensive and costs a lot of money.
For Example: Buying the brand new bicycle would cost an arm and a leg, so I am saving my allowance. / That giant toy spaceship costs an arm and a leg.
Other Ways to Say: Very expensive / Super costly
2. Save for a rainy day
Meaning: This idiom means saving up your coins or cash for a time when you might really need it.
For Example: Instead of spending all his birthday money on candy, he decided to save for a rainy day. / Putting coins in a piggy bank helps you save for a rainy day.
Other Ways to Say: Save money / Store up cash
3. Born with a silver spoon in your mouth
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who is born into a very wealthy family with plenty of money.
For Example: Living in a giant mansion made people think he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. / Do not assume everyone was born with a silver spoon in their mouth.
Other Ways to Say: Born rich / Very privileged
4. Break the bank
Meaning: This idiom means spending all your money or making something far too expensive to buy.
For Example: Buying one small comic book won’t break the bank, so you can treat yourself. / That amusement park ticket costs too much and will break the bank.
Other Ways to Say: Cost too much / Spend all cash
5. Penny for your thoughts
Meaning: This idiom means asking someone what they are thinking about right now.
For Example: You look very quiet while studying, penny for your thoughts? / He smiled at his friend and asked for a penny for your thoughts.
Other Ways to Say: What are you thinking / Share your ideas
6. A penny saved is a penny earned
Meaning: This idiom means saving money is just as smart and valuable as making money.
For Example: Putting your allowance in a piggy bank proves that a penny saved is a penny earned. / Grandma always reminded us that a penny saved is a penny earned.
Other Ways to Say: Saving is smart / Keep your coins
7. Money talks
Meaning: This idiom means that having wealth or rich sponsors gives you power and influence.
For Example: People often listen closely when wealthy sponsors speak because money talks. / In big business deals, people say money talks.
Other Ways toSay: Wealth has power / Cash rules
8. Pay an arm and a leg
Meaning: This idiom means spending a huge amount of money to buy a single item.
For Example: We had to pay an arm and a leg for tickets to the big concert. / Don’t pay an arm and a leg for simple school supplies.
Other Ways to Say: Spend too much / Cost a fortune
9. Pitch in
Meaning: This idiom means contributing a little bit of money or help to a group project.
For Example: All the kids decided to pitch in some coins to buy a gift for the teacher. / If we all pitch in, we can buy the pizza.
Other Ways to Say: Contribute / Share cost
10. Rolling in dough
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who has a lot of money and is very wealthy.
For Example: After winning the raffle, he joked that he was rolling in dough. / Having a full piggy bank makes you feel like you are rolling in dough.
Other Ways to Say: Very rich / Wealthy
11. Clean up
Meaning: This idiom means making a large amount of money or profit from a sale or game.
For Example: Setting up a lemonade stand on a hot day helped us clean up. / Selling old toys at the yard sale let him clean up nicely.
Other Ways to Say: Make a profit / Earn much
12. Cash cow
Meaning: This idiom describes a business or project that continuously makes a lot of money.
For Example: The popular arcade game became a steady cash cow for the amusement park. / Selling school t-shirts turned into a cash cow for the club.
Other Ways to Say: Money maker / Profitable venture
13. Shell out
Meaning: This idiom means spending your hard-earned money to pay for something.
For Example: I had to shell out ten dollars for the museum admission ticket. / Parents often shell out money for sports gear.
Other Ways to Say: Pay cash / Spend money
14. Foot the bill
Meaning: This idiom means paying the money for a meal, event, or group purchase.
For Example: Dad decided to foot the bill for our entire family dinner at the restaurant. / Who is going to foot the bill for the pizza party?
Other Ways to Say: Pay the cost / Cover expenses
15. Make a fast buck
Meaning: This idiom means earning money quickly, sometimes without working very hard.
For Example: He tried to make a fast buck by selling painted rocks at school. / Doing quick chores can help you make a fast buck.
Other Ways to Say: Earn quickly / Make fast cash
16. Tighten your belt
Meaning: This idiom means spending less money and being careful with your budget during tough times.
For Example: When allowance was reduced, we had to tighten our belts and save coins. / Families tighten their belts when buying expensive items.
Other Ways to Say: Spend less / Save money
17. Live beyond your means
Meaning: This idiom means spending more money than you actually earn or have saved.
For Example: Buying toys you cannot afford means you are living beyond your means. / Save your cash instead of living beyond your means.
Other Ways to Say: Overspend / Waste cash
18. Live within your means
Meaning: This idiom means spending only the money you have without going into debt.
For Example: Saving allowance teaches children how to live within their means. / Wise shoppers learn to live within their means.
Other Ways to Say: Spend wisely / Budget carefully
19. Born with a silver spoon
Meaning: This idiom describes someone born into a rich family with abundant money.
For Example: Growing up in a giant mansion made people say he was born with a silver spoon. / Appreciate what you earn rather than acting born with a silver spoon.
Other Ways to Say: Rich background / Privileged birth
20. Dime a dozen
Meaning: This idiom describes something so cheap and common that it costs almost nothing.
For Example: Plain white paper clips are a dime a dozen in the supply closet. / Ordinary marbles are a dime a dozen.
Other Ways to Say: Very cheap / Common
21. Flat broke
Meaning: This idiom means having zero money left in your wallet or piggy bank.
For Example: After buying video games, he was completely flat broke until next week’s allowance. / Don’t spend all your coins or you will be flat broke.
Other Ways to Say: Out of money / Penniless
22. Not worth a dime
Meaning: This idiom describes something of zero value or poor quality that costs nothing.
For Example: That broken plastic toy is not worth a dime. / Old scratched CDs are not worth a dime anymore.
Other Ways to Say: Worthless / Valueless
23. Pay top dollar
Meaning: This idiom means paying the highest possible price for a high-quality item.
For Example: He was willing to pay top dollar for the rare comic book. / Don’t pay top dollar when you can buy it on sale.
Other Ways toSay: Pay expensive price / Cost much
24. Penny-wise and pound-foolish
Meaning: This idiom describes saving small amounts of money while wasting large amounts elsewhere.
For Example: Saving five cents on pencils while wasting twenty dollars on games is penny-wise and pound-foolish. / Plan your budget so you aren’t penny-wise and pound-foolish.
Other Ways to Say: Poor budgeter / Unwise spender
25. Pitch pennies
Meaning: This idiom describes a simple playground game where players toss coins toward a line.
For Example: During recess, the kids liked to pitch pennies against the brick wall. / Pitching pennies is an old-fashioned coin game.
Other Ways to Say: Play coin games / Toss money
26. Pour money down the drain
Meaning: This idiom means wasting cash on silly things that have zero value.
For Example: Buying toys that break immediately is like pouring money down the drain. / Don’t pour money down the drain on arcade tokens.
Other Ways to Say: Waste cash / Spend foolishly
27. Pretty penny
Meaning: This idiom means a very large amount of money.
For Example: That brand new bicycle cost a pretty penny at the store. / Building a treehouse takes a pretty penny in wood supplies.
Other Ways to Say: Expensive / Large sum
28. Quiet as a mouse with money
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who keeps their savings hidden and secret.
For Example: He saved his allowance in a hidden box and stayed quiet as a mouse with money. / Keep your savings secret.
Other Ways to Say: Secret saver / Quiet spender
29. Rake in the cash
Meaning: This idiom means earning a massive amount of money very quickly.
For Example: The bake sale helped the club rake in the cash for new art supplies. / Successful lemonade stands rake in the cash on sunny days.
Other Ways to Say: Earn much / Make big money
30. Ride the gravy train
Meaning: This idiom means making easy money with very little work effort.
For Example: Getting paid for just watering plants felt like riding the gravy train. / Easy jobs sometimes feel like riding the gravy train.
Other Ways to Say: Easy earnings / Simple money
31. Saving grace
Meaning: This idiom describes a positive detail that saves a costly mistake from being terrible.
For Example: Finding the item on sale was the saving grace for my budget. / Having a coupon was the saving grace when buying books.
Other Ways to Say: Helpful detail / Budget saver
32. Seeing green
Meaning: This idiom means being overly focused on making money and getting rich.
For Example: When he saw how much the toy sold for, he started seeing green. / Don’t spend your life just seeing green.
Other Ways to Say: Money hungry / Greedy
33. Sock away
Meaning: This idiom means saving cash by hiding it away in a safe place.
For Example: She liked to sock away her birthday coins in a jar under her bed. / Sock away half your allowance for future needs.
Other Ways to Say: Save money / Store cash
34. Spend money like water
Meaning: This idiom means spending cash carelessly and quickly without keeping track.
For Example: Winning the prize made him spend money like water on snacks. / Don’t spend money like water at the arcade.
Other Ways to Say: Overspend / Waste cash
35. Squid bill
Meaning: This idiom humorously refers to paying a confusing restaurant bill.
For Example: Splitting the dinner costs turned into a funny squid bill calculation. / Figuring out tax and tip makes a squid bill.
Other Ways to Say: Confusing check / Bill calculation
36. Strike it rich
Meaning: This idiom means suddenly becoming wealthy through luck or a great idea.
For Example: Finding a rare baseball card in the attic felt like he struck it rich. / Inventors hope to strike it rich with their gadgets.
Other Ways to Say: Become wealthy / Make a fortune
37. Take a hit
Meaning: This idiom means losing money or suffering a financial drop in savings.
For Example: Paying for bicycle repairs made my piggy bank take a hit. / Buying new school clothes makes savings take a hit.
Other Ways to Say: Lose money / Financial loss
38. Throw good money after bad
Meaning: This idiom means spending more cash trying to fix something that is already ruined.
For Example: Repairing the broken plastic toy is just throwing good money after bad. / Don’t throw good money after bad on failing projects.
Other Ways to Say: Waste more cash / Foolish spending
39. To the tune of
Meaning: This idiom means amounting to a specific, usually large sum of money.
For Example: The new computer equipment was purchased to the tune of five hundred dollars. / Repairs cost money to the tune of fifty dollars.
Other Ways to Say: Amounting to / Costing sum
40. Two cents
Meaning: This idiom means offering your personal opinion or advice on a topic.
For Example: Even though I was young, I offered my two cents on the club project. / Let me add my two cents to the conversation.
Other Ways to Say: My opinion / Personal view
41. Upwardly mobile
Meaning: This idiom describes moving up to a higher social or financial level with more money.
For Example: Getting a promotion helped his family become upwardly mobile. / Education helps people become upwardly mobile.
Other Ways to Say: Gaining wealth / Advancing
42. Value for money
Meaning: This idiom means getting great quality and usefulness for the cash you spent.
For Example: Buying sturdy winter boots provides great value for money. / Reusable water bottles offer good value for money.
Other Ways to Say: Worth the cost / Good purchase
43. Wages of sin
Meaning: This idiom describes the negative consequences or losses resulting from bad choices.
For Example: Stealing cookies led to losing dessert privileges as the wages of sin. / Fines are the wages of breaking parking rules.
Other Ways to Say: Consequences / Penalties
44. Wealthy as a king
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who feels richer and more prosperous than anyone else.
For Example: Having a full piggy bank made the boy feel wealthy as a king. / Spending time with family makes you feel wealthy as a king.
Other Ways to Say: Very rich / Prosperous
45. Wet your beak
Meaning: This idiom means taking a small share or cut of earned money or profits.
For Example: Everyone who helped sell lemonade wanted to wet their beak on the earnings. / Partners expect to wet their beak in business deals.
Other Ways to Say: Take a cut / Share profit
46. Worth your salt money
Meaning: This idiom describes earning fair pay for performing a job with high skill.
For Example: A worker worth their salt deserves good wages. / Earning pocket money by cleaning proves you are worth your salt money.
Other Ways to Say: Fair pay / Earned wages
47. Zero balance
Meaning: This idiom means having no money left in your account or wallet.
For Example: Checking the toy store receipt left his bank account with a zero balance. / Pay off debts to avoid a zero balance panic.
Other Ways to Say: Empty account / No cash
48. Golden handshake
Meaning: This idiom describes a large sum of money given to someone when leaving a company.
For Example: Retiring after forty years earned him a generous golden handshake. / Executives sometimes receive a golden handshake.
Other Ways to Say: Departure bonus / Rich payout
49. Nest egg
Meaning: This idiom describes money saved up over a long time for future needs.
For Example: Parents build a college nest egg for their children’s education. / Saving coins daily creates a nice nest egg.
Other Ways to Say: Savings fund / Stored money
50. Payday
Meaning: This idiom describes the specific day when workers receive their earned money.
For Example: Friday was payday, so Dad brought home pizza for dinner. / Employees look forward to payday every two weeks.
Other Ways to Say: Wage day / Pay check time
51. Money burning a hole in your pocket
Meaning: This idiom describes having cash and feeling an urgent temptation to spend it immediately.
For Example: Having ten dollars in his pocket felt like money burning a hole in his pocket at the toy store. / Don’t let cash burn a hole in your pocket; save it.
Other Ways to Say: Urgent spending urge / Cash itch
52. Bottom dollar
Meaning: This idiom describes your absolute last remaining coin or dollar bill.
For Example: He spent his bottom dollar on a comic book. / I bet my bottom dollar our team will win the game.
Other Ways to Say: Last coin / Final savings
53. Golden rule of finance
Meaning: This idiom describes the wise rule of saving part of every dollar you earn.
For Example: Always putting ten percent in a piggy bank is the golden rule of finance. / Following the golden rule of finance prevents debt.
Other Ways to Say: Financial rule / Smart budgeting
54. Pay your way
Meaning: This idiom means paying for your own expenses without asking others for money.
For Example: Working part-time in high school taught him how to pay his way. / Adults work hard to pay their way through life.
Other Ways to Say: Pay expenses / Support yourself
55. Worth every penny
Meaning: This idiom describes a purchase that cost money but proved to be completely useful.
For Example: The encyclopedia set cost a lot, but it was worth every penny for school. / That bicycle helmet was worth every penny.
Other Ways to Say: Highly useful / Great purchase
56. Money doesn’t grow on trees
Meaning: This idiom means money is limited and hard-earned, so you should not waste it.
For Example: When asked for another toy, mom reminded us that money doesn’t grow on trees. / Save your allowance because money doesn’t grow on trees.
Other Ways to Say: Cash is limited / Work for money
57. Cash is king
Meaning: This idiom means having physical paper money is often better than using cards or credit.
For Example: Small yard sales prove that cash is king when buying items quickly. / Merchants appreciate when cash is king during transactions.
Other Ways to Say: Paper money rules / Cash works best
58. Cheap skate
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who refuses to spend money or share costs.
For Example: He wouldn’t pitch in ten cents for snacks and acted like a cheap skate. / Don’t be a cheap skate when sharing pizza costs.
Other Ways to Say: Stingy person / Miser
59. Spendthrift
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who spends money carelessly and much too fast.
For Example: Winning a prize made her act like a spendthrift at the mall. / Avoid being a spendthrift so you don’t run out of cash.
Other Ways to Say: Careless spender / Wastrel
60. Midas touch
Meaning: This idiom describes someone who has a talent for making money in everything they try.
For Example: Every business he started made a profit like he had the Midas touch. / The young entrepreneur seemed to have the Midas touch.
Other Ways to Say: Ability to make money / Lucky earner
Exercise to Practice
- Buying the brand new bicycle would ________, so I am saving my allowance.
- Instead of spending all his birthday money on candy, he decided to ________.
- Living in a giant mansion made people think he was ________.
- Buying one small comic book won’t ________, so you can treat yourself.
- You look very quiet while studying, ________?
- Putting your allowance in a piggy bank proves that ________.
- People often listen closely when wealthy sponsors speak because ________.
- We had to ________ for tickets to the big concert.
- All the kids decided to ________ some coins to buy a gift for the teacher.
- After winning the raffle, he joked that he was ________.
- Setting up a lemonade stand on a hot day helped us ________.
- The popular arcade game became a steady ________ for the amusement park.
- I had to ________ ten dollars for the museum admission ticket.
- Dad decided to ________ for our entire family dinner at the restaurant.
- He tried to ________ by selling painted rocks at school.
Answer Key
- cost an arm and a leg
- save for a rainy day
- born with a silver spoon in your mouth
- break the bank
- penny for your thoughts
- a penny saved is a penny earned
- money talks
- pay an arm and a leg
- pitch in
- rolling in dough
- clean up
- cash cow
- shell out
- foot the bill
- make a fast buck
Conclusion
Learning idioms for money makes talking about spending, saving, and shopping more fun and colorful. These expressions help you describe budgets, allowances, and everyday financial situations creatively. They can make conversations and stories about money more interesting and engaging. Try using some of these phrases when chatting with family or writing about shopping. With practice, these idioms can make your everyday language more natural and expressive.
