as in small-time
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Recent Examples of nickel-and-dime
Full-service hotels like Marriott and InterContinental still offer a more inclusive experience, and international airlines like Qatar Airways don't nickel-and-dime you for luggage.
—
Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
The nickel-and-dime crack sales; the tickets for open containers — none of that mattered anymore.
—Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 11 May 2025
With a comfy 16-point cushion entering the fourth quarter, though, Adelman turned to Jordan again to nickel-and-dime Jokic a few minutes of rest.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 29 Apr. 2025
That’s caused the run game to fade and forced Patrick Mahomes to lean more into a nickel-and-dime approach.
—Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025
Much of it has been nickel-and-dime stuff but with some big-name crooks.
—Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2024
Trying to nickel-and-dime such an important player could have done more harm than good.
—Darnell Mayberry, The Athletic, 1 Aug. 2024
Southwest Airlines, which set itself apart from its nickel-and-dime competitors, will soon scrap its open-seat policy and charge folks for more legroom.
—Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 26 July 2024
Love or hate Apple, the company’s nickel-and-dime approach to cables, dongles, and chargers primed people to believe reports like this.
—Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 14 Sep. 2023
Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
The nickel-and-dime crack sales; the tickets for open containers — none of that mattered anymore.
—Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 11 May 2025
With a comfy 16-point cushion entering the fourth quarter, though, Adelman turned to Jordan again to nickel-and-dime Jokic a few minutes of rest.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 29 Apr. 2025
That’s caused the run game to fade and forced Patrick Mahomes to lean more into a nickel-and-dime approach.
—Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025
Much of it has been nickel-and-dime stuff but with some big-name crooks.
—Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2024
Trying to nickel-and-dime such an important player could have done more harm than good.
—Darnell Mayberry, The Athletic, 1 Aug. 2024
Southwest Airlines, which set itself apart from its nickel-and-dime competitors, will soon scrap its open-seat policy and charge folks for more legroom.
—Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 26 July 2024
Love or hate Apple, the company’s nickel-and-dime approach to cables, dongles, and chargers primed people to believe reports like this.
—Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 14 Sep. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nickel-and-dime
Adjective
-
Superfakes is about a small-time Chinatown luxury counterfeit dealer who enters a dangerous black-market underworld in order to fund a life of suburban respectability for her family.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
18 Mar. 2026
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The proceeds paid off the loss of the second smuggle and, crucially, fulfilled the original trio’s obligations to the small-time dealer who had fronted them the cash to buy The Escape in return for a commitment to two successful smuggles.—
Jack Crosbie,
Rolling Stone,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Examples of petty beatings also abound, like footage from December showing two guys in Leeds, UK tossing a delivery robot into a bush, or video of one bot cracked open and left for dead on a Los Angeles sidewalk.—
Joe Wilkins,
Futurism,
2 Apr. 2026
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His distracted state gave him practically no leverage to overcome Senate President Bill Ferguson’s blockade against his petty redistricting effort.—
Torrey Snow,
Baltimore Sun,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The handwash sink next to the three-compartment sink proved worthless without soap, paper towels or a mechanical blower.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
5 Apr. 2026
-
In an economy where wages are anchored to what compute would cost to replicate human work, human labor becomes economically marginal—not worthless, but negligibly small relative to the overall pie.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nickel-and-dime.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nickel-and-dime. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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