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Glite Dictionary
cash on the barrelhead

cash on the barrelhead

1 7.6
You pay the full price in cash immediately when you buy something
  • idiom
  • Archaic
translation icon : pago al contado
  • WE GOT 20 BUCKS, CASH ON THE BARRELHEAD.

Examples

  • Rule #1: If you can't pay cash on the barrelhead, wait until you can.

    Blog text (25)

  • Cash on the barrelhead.

    The Salton Sea (2002)

  • I told the guy, cash on the barrelhead.

    Dark City (1998)

  • Only thing makes you a guest in this joint... is cash on the barrelhead!

    Dark City (1998)

  • It seems to be quite a bonanza, though, for Paul and the Worthe Group—they're getting a lot of cash on the barrelhead for bringing in a partner.

    Blog text (32)

  • When buying this car, make sure you bring cash on the barrelhead to finalize the deal.

  • The seller insisted on cash on the barrelhead, so I withdrew money from the bank before making the purchase.

  • In this shop, you must pay cash on the barrelhead if you want to take the items home today.

Synonyms

hard cash
vscash on the barrelhead
10 2.7

Money in the form of bills and coins, not cards or electronic payments

concerns immediate full payment at the sale rather than only physical form
cash in hand
vscash on the barrelhead
3 3.4

Money you can use immediately

stresses payment at the moment of transaction instead of simple availability
ready cash
vscash on the barrelhead
2 2.7

Money in cash that you can use immediately

focuses on payment at the transaction rather than mere availability of funds
spot cash
vscash on the barrelhead
4.9

A payment of money you give immediately when you buy something

refers to immediate full payment at transaction time often in physical money
ready money
vscash on the barrelhead
3.7

Cash you keep for immediate use

emphasizes instant full payment at purchase not just readiness to spend

Antonyms

installment
  • US
24 3.2

One part of the total cost paid regularly over time

to credit
23 2.3

To add money to an account

Surface Forms

cash on the barrelhead singular
cash on the barrelheads plural

Morphology

cash + on + the + barrelhead

The phrase evokes the literal image of placing 'cash' on a 'barrelhead', which plausibly signals immediate payment and so there is a clear link to the constituents. However, 'barrelhead' is uncommon and the expression is idiomatic/historical rather than a routine compositional pattern, so a B1 learner might not fully predict the conventional meaning without prior exposure.

Etymology

Cash on the barrelhead may come from old market stalls where sellers used the flat top of a barrel as a table. Buyers put cash on the seller's barrelhead before they took the goods, so the phrase means 'immediate payment in full'.