trade-off

noun

ˈtrād-ˌȯf 

1

: a balancing of factors all of which are not attainable at the same time

the education versus experience trade-off which governs personnel practices

—H. S. White

2

: a giving up of one thing in return for another : exchange

trade off transitive verb

Synonyms

• back-and-forth
• barter
• commutation
• dicker
• exchange
• quid pro quo
• swap
• trade
• truck

Examples of trade-off in a Sentence

a trade-off in which a company got a celebrity spokesperson and a fading star got some much-needed cash

Recent Examples on the Web

Minneapolis Public Schools, for instance, has proposed a budget that resists closing schools but comes with other trade-offs: increasing class sizes, ending fifth grade instrumental music, and eliminating assistant principals at elementary schools, among other changes. —Riley Robinson, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 June 2024

The trade-off is that campaigns can lose some control, because the influencers use their own language and may veer from the campaign’s message, especially if their followers post angry messages in the comment section. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 4 June 2024

However, there are a few trade-offs, mainly in expense, bulk, and cloud streaming issues on iOS. —PCMAG, 30 May 2024

Still, different sampling and weighting techniques featured trade-offs and offered no silver bullets. —Geoffrey Skelley, ABC News, 30 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

trade-off

noun

ˈtrād-ˌȯf

1

: a balancing of things all of which cannot be had at the same time

2

: a giving up of one thing in return for another