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
That vacuum has fueled the rise of private educational consultants but at a cost that is often out of reach for most families.
—
Heather Wishart-Smith, Forbes.com, 26 May 2025
Alice’s troops eventually broke the siege, but at a cost.
—Manvir Singh, New Yorker, 17 May 2025
Listen to this article DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Mega Millions players will get slightly better odds and should start seeing more billion-dollar jackpots, but at a cost — literally — with tickets for the multistate lottery jumping in price to $5.
—Scott McFetridge, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
The second one was much larger, with 12 trailers connected at a cost of $6.3 million for two years, according to news reports at the time.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for at a cost
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Heather Wishart-Smith, Forbes.com, 26 May 2025
Alice’s troops eventually broke the siege, but at a cost.
—Manvir Singh, New Yorker, 17 May 2025
Listen to this article DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Mega Millions players will get slightly better odds and should start seeing more billion-dollar jackpots, but at a cost — literally — with tickets for the multistate lottery jumping in price to $5.
—Scott McFetridge, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
The second one was much larger, with 12 trailers connected at a cost of $6.3 million for two years, according to news reports at the time.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 15 May 2025
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 4 Jun. 2025.
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