
IdiomDaily Life
English
be pocket change
Meaning: To be a trivial amount of money for the person paying.
Example: “To that company, the fine was pocket change.”
Origin: Pocket change is the loose coins one carries. The dismissive use for large sums that mean little to a rich payer is American from the 20th century.
Equivalents in other languages
German: aus der Portokasse zahlen Literally: To pay from the postage kitty
More English idioms
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- get the wrong end of the stick To misunderstand something completely.
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