trade-off

noun

ˈtrād-ˌȯf 

1

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

Governments face a trade-off between privacy and increasing the effectiveness of tax collection.

—Ricardo Perez-Truglia and Ugo Troiano

2

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

trade off transitive verb

Synonyms of trade-off

• exchange

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

The league made a trade-off in 2007 when the Galaxy signed David Beckham, who was followed by a steady stream of big-name stars from Thierry Henry, Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robbie Keane and Bastian Schweinsteiger. —Kevin Baxter follow, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026

The document notes the audit could improve user well-being, but said teams should consider possible trade-offs including a loss of engagement. —Cnn, Mercury News, 24 Feb. 2026

The trade-off is charging speed. —Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 24 Feb. 2026

Of course, there is a trade-off. —David Szondy february 24, New Atlas, 24 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for trade-off

• cerenkov
• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff

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