at a cost
idiom
: by giving up something else
He had achieved fame, but at a cost; he'd lost many friends and no longer talked to anyone in his family.
Examples of at a cost in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The school is being expanded and improved to accommodate sixth-grade students at a cost that is now $65 million including the additional $2 million.
—
Mike Danahey, Chicago Tribune, 21 Feb. 2026
The company's website shows that three-day trips to the Frog Lake huts are still available at a cost of $1,165.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
They were commissioned by the city from the global infrastructure firm AECOM at a cost of $5 million.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Getty Images Since the June strikes, Iran’s rulers have been weakened by street protests, suppressed at a cost of thousands of lives, against a cost-of-living crisis driven in part by international sanctions that have strangled the country’s oil income.
—Max Burman, NBC news, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for at a cost
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Mike Danahey, Chicago Tribune, 21 Feb. 2026
The company's website shows that three-day trips to the Frog Lake huts are still available at a cost of $1,165.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
They were commissioned by the city from the global infrastructure firm AECOM at a cost of $5 million.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2026
Getty Images Since the June strikes, Iran’s rulers have been weakened by street protests, suppressed at a cost of thousands of lives, against a cost-of-living crisis driven in part by international sanctions that have strangled the country’s oil income.
—Max Burman, NBC news, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for at a cost
Cite this Entry
“At a cost.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/at%20a%20cost. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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