Englishmoney to burn
Meaning: Extra money; money to spend however one likes.
Example: “With that inheritance, he has money to burn.”
Origin: Burning money is the purest available example of waste, and for a reason worth spelling out: money is the one commodity with no use-value whatsoever. Burning food, cloth, or fuel destroys something that could have been consumed directly, so the loss is at least intelligible; burning currency destroys nothing but a claim on other things, which makes it waste with no residue of purpose at all. Having money to burn therefore does not describe generous spending but a surplus so far beyond any use that even the most perfectly pointless disposal of it would be affordable. The phrase is American and attested from the 1890s, and it is almost always said by someone who does not have any.
More English idioms
- not worth a plugged nickel Worthless.
- not worth a red cent Worthless.
- not worth the paper it's printed on Worthless.
- odd man out The person who is left out; the person who doesn't fit in.
- odds and ends Small items that are left over, don't match, or are missing a mate.
- off one's rocker Out of one's mind; slightly crazy.
Explore another collection: Tongue Twisters
Tricky phrases to practice out loud, from languages around the world.
- Unique New York. Three words that jam the 'y/n/k' sequence together — repeat it and it collapses into 'you…
- Pad kid poured curd pulled cod. Alternating repetition — the consonants swap at the start of every other word, which is w…
- Red lorry, yellow lorry. The 'l/r' alternation drill — deceptively short, yet almost impossible to say fast withou…
Keep exploring