chump change

noun

: a relatively small or insignificant amount of money

Examples of chump change in a Sentence

what seems like a huge amount of money to most people is only chump change to a billionaire
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Suddenly, even impressive earnings from mid-budget movies were starting to look like chump change compared to the hundreds of millions of dollars franchises could turn in with the promise of sequels. Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018 Working over nine days in Ireland with the chump change left over from another Corman production, Coppola was asked to do a no-budget Psycho and delivered a film that Corman had to reshoot to deem releasable. Scott Tobias, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024 Compared with almost $4.7 trillion in gross taxes, that’s chump change. Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2024 As for any cost associated with a council expansion, that’s chump change compared to the cost of inadequate representation. Baltimore Sun Editorial Board, Baltimore Sun, 26 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for chump change 

Word History

First Known Use

1956, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of chump change was in 1956

Dictionary Entries Near chump change

Cite this Entry

“Chump change.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chump%20change. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!