English Explanatory Dictionary

cheap

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Low or reduced in price.
  2. Of poor quality.
  3. Of little worth.
  4. Underhanded or unfair.
  5. Stingy; mean; excessively frugal.
  6. Trading at a price level which is low relative to historical trends, a similar asset, or (for derivatives) a theoretical value.
  7. Taking little of system time or resources.
noun
  1. Trade; traffic; chaffer; chaffering.
  2. A market; marketplace.
  3. Price.
  4. A low price; a bargain.
  5. Cheapness; lowness of price; abundance of supply.
verb
  1. To trade; traffic; bargain; chaffer; ask the price of goods; cheapen goods.
  2. To bargain for; chaffer for; ask the price of; offer a price for; cheapen.
  3. To buy; purchase.
  4. To sell.
adv
  1. Cheaply.

Pronunciation

/ˈt͡ʃiːp/ [ˈt͡ʃʰɪi̯p] En-uk-cheap.ogg

Word forms

cheap cheaper cheapest chap chop ch3ap cheaps cheaping cheaped more cheap most cheap

Etymology

As a noun, from Middle English chep, from Old English cēap (“trade, market, value”), from Proto-West Germanic *kaup. As a verb, from Middle English chepen, from Old English ċēapian (“to buy, bargain, trade”), from Proto-West Germanic *kaupōn, from Proto-Germanic *kaupōną, a verbal derivative of *kaupô (“trader”), from Latin caupō. The adjective originated as a shortening of Middle and Early Modern English good cheap, literally “good purchase” (as in “that was good cheap”, i.e. “that was [a] good purchase”). Compare Dutch goedkoop, French bon marché. Cognates Cognate with Scots chepe (“to sell”), chape (“sale price”), North Frisian keap (“purchase”), West Frisian keap (“purchase, buy, acquisition”), Dutch koop (“buy, purchase, deal”), kopen (“to buy, purchase, shop”), Low German kopen (“to buy”), German Kauf (“trade, traffic, bargain, purchase, buy”), kaufen (“to buy”), Swedish köp (“bargain, purchase”), köpa (“to buy, purchase”), Norwegian Nynorsk kjøpa (“to buy, purchase”), Icelandic kaup (“purchase, bargain”), kaupa (“to purchase”); also borrowed as Finnish kauppa (“shop, trade”), Russian купить (kupitʹ, “to purchase”), Old Church Slavonic коупити (kupiti, “to purchase”), Bulgarian ку́пя (kúpja, “to purchase”), Serbo-Croatian купити (“to purchase”), Czech koupit (“to purchase”), Polish kupić (“to purchase”).

Synonyms

bargainous brand X budget cheap cheapie cheapo cheesy competitive economic economical el cheapo inexpensive low-cost low-end low-priced nickel sixpenny tinhorn two a penny unexpensive affordable bargain good value low-quality shoddy ass bad base below par bottom-shelf BTEC bum cheap and nasty cheapshit chintzy coffee-and crap crappo crappy craptastic crapperific craptabulous craptacular cruddy crummy dogwater drecky flimsy fourth-rate gash garbage god-awful inferior lousy low low-grade low-rent made in China mid naughty

Antonyms

affordable expensive dear costly pricey 5-star big-ticket chargeful cheap at half the price costful cost-prohibitive fancy dearthful dispendious ex expenny exy high-cost lickpenny million-dollar high-priced princely out of sight overdear ruinous spendy spenno spenny splurgy steep precious valuable invaluable priceless rich overvalued overpriced

Related words

discount dollar-store bargain Poundland Tesco Value value Wish.com economy good value value for money attainable econo- cheap thing low-quality worthless on the cheap

Derived words

all over one like a cheap suit Chapman cheap and cheerful cheap and nasty cheap-arse Tuesday cheap as borscht cheap as chips cheapass cheap at half the price cheap at the price cheap Charlie cheap date cheap drunk cheapen cheap fake cheapie cheapish cheapjack cheap John cheap like borscht cheaply cheapness cheapo cheapoid cheapquel cheap seats cheapshit cheap-shot cheap shot cheap-skate cheapskate cheap skate cheapstead cheapster cheap thrill cheap trick cheap tripper dirt cheap dirt-cheap dog-cheap el cheapo fold like a cheap suit fold like a cheap suitcase fold like a cheap tent for the cheap seats go cheap hold cheap lie like a cheap rug lie like a cheap watch on the cheap play it cheap play to the cheap seats supercheap talk is cheap ultracheap cheap out
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