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
Ricardo Perez-Truglia and Ugo Troiano2
: a giving up of one thing in return for another : exchange
trade off
transitive verb
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
However, each ship approved for transit tends to carry a greater cost or trade-off as the game progresses over 10 playable days between March 3 and April 13, 2026.
—Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2026
The trade-off is limited control.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 May 2026
Like many pilot programs, there are trade-offs.
—Jackie Fortiér, Miami Herald, 8 May 2026
The fact that so few people can get in is part of the point, a hedge against the trade-offs of mass appeal.
—Julian Sancton, HollywoodReporter, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for trade-off
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Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2026
The trade-off is limited control.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 May 2026
Like many pilot programs, there are trade-offs.
—Jackie Fortiér, Miami Herald, 8 May 2026
The fact that so few people can get in is part of the point, a hedge against the trade-offs of mass appeal.
—Julian Sancton, HollywoodReporter, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for trade-off
Cite this Entry
“Trade-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trade-off. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
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