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Glite Dictionary
to break the bank

to break the bank

11 3.8
To cost a lot of money
  • idiom
  • /breɪk ðə bæŋk/
translation icon : arruinar
  • I like it a lot and it does not break the bank, which is the best part.
  • want to break the bank
  • willing to break the bank
  • benefits without breaking the bank

So you don't have to break the bank to look.

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Examples

  • Retailers locked in their prices for turkeys this year, so Thanksgiving won't break the bank for most Americans.

    Blog text (16)

  • I was able to make it in and get a few things without breaking the bank.

    Blog text (19)

  • There are several ways to add more activity to your day without breaking the bank.

    Blog text (34)

  • NYC on a Budget: Your Guide to Living in the City Without Breaking the Bank

    Blog text (29)

  • I need some ideas for dates that aren't going to break the bank.

    Blog text (11)

  • A little cut in your weekly wage won't exactly break the bank, will it?

    The Unknown Trilogy (2008)

  • A good, classy, and reasonably priced champagne that won't break the bank is Veuve Clicquot.

    Blog text (18)

  • This new restaurant offers delicious meals that don't break the bank.

  • I wanted to buy a new sofa, but I found one that looks great and doesn't break the bank.

  • You can take a wonderful vacation without having to break the bank by choosing budget-friendly options.

Synonyms

to splash out
vsto break the bank
  • UK
1 7.2

Spend a lot of money on something, usually to celebrate or treat yourself

is about costing a great deal and exhausting resources rather than occasional extravagance
to blow savings
vsto break the bank
  • Informal
1 6.9

To spend saved money quickly on things you do not need

is about high cost or exhausting resources rather than careless waste
to push the boat out
vsto break the bank
  • UK
1 8.7

Spend a lot of money for a special celebration

is about high cost or using up resources rather than planned celebratory spending
to blow one's wad
vsto break the bank
  • Informal
9.9

To spend all your money at once

is about high cost that uses up resources rather than one sudden spend

Antonyms

to afford
∞ 1.1

To have enough money or time to do what you want

How Expensive

to break the bank
11 3.8
expensive
∞ 1.0
affordable
307 2.1
cheap
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

break the bank infinitive
broke the bank past
broken the bank past participle
breaking the bank present participle
breaks the bank third person singular

Morphology

break + the + bank

The literal words 'break' and 'bank' point toward a financial sense (destroying or exhausting a bank/funds), but the specific idiomatic meaning 'to cost so much that it exhausts one's resources' relies on a metaphorical extension of 'bank' and idiomatic usage. A B1 learner who knows the constituents might guess it relates to money loss but would unlikely derive the precise sense without prior exposure.

Etymology

Break the bank may come from old gambling games where a player won so much money that the game's money box was emptied, as if they had broken the bank. So today it means 'to cost a great deal' or to spend so much money you almost run out.