WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
cheap /tʃip/USA pronunciation
adj., -er, -est, adv., n.
adj.
adv.
cheap•ly, adv.
cheap•ness, n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026adj.
- costing very little;
inexpensive:We sat in the cheap seats at the circus. - [usually* before a noun] charging low prices: a cheap store.
- poorly made;
inferior;
shoddy:Those cheap sneakers fell apart after only a few weeks. - costing little work or trouble: Talk is cheap.
- mean;
cruel and deserving contempt: a cheap joke. - [be + ~] of little account or value: Life was cheap in that frontier town.
- embarrassed:I felt cheap after I had left her all alone.
- stingy;
miserly:That was cheap of her, not to share any of her candy. - (of money) able to be borrowed at low interest:Money is cheap and that should make housing starts rise.
adv.
- at a low price or small cost:I got that tape cheap.
- Idiomson the cheap, inexpensively;
economically:He did everything on the cheap.
cheap•ly, adv.
cheap•ness, n. [uncountable]
- cheap, inexpensive both suggest low cost. cheap now often suggests that the item is poorly made or a showy imitation of something better: a cheap fabric. inexpensive emphasizes a low price (although more expensive than cheap) and suggests that the value is equal to the cost: I didn't pay much for this inexpensive dress. inexpensive is sometimes used to avoid the more insulting cheap.
cheap
(chēp),USA pronunciation adj., -er, -est, adv., n.
adj.
adv.
n.
cheap′ish, adj.
cheap′ish•ly, adv.
cheap′ly, adv.
cheap′ness, n.
adj.
- costing very little;
relatively low in price;
inexpensive:a cheap dress. - costing little labor or trouble:Words are cheap.
- charging low prices:a very cheap store.
- of little account;
of small value;
mean;
shoddy:cheap conduct; cheap workmanship. - embarrassed;
sheepish:He felt cheap about his mistake. - obtainable at a low rate of interest:when money is cheap.
- of decreased value or purchasing power, as currency depreciated due to inflation.
- stingy;
miserly:He's too cheap to buy his own brother a cup of coffee. - Idioms cheap at twice the price, exceedingly inexpensive:I found this old chair for eight dollars—it would be cheap at twice the price.
adv.
- at a low price;
at small cost:He is willing to sell cheap.
n.
- on the cheap, [Informal.]inexpensively;
economically:She enjoys traveling on the cheap.
- Latin caupō innkeeper, tradesman; see chapman
- bef. 900; Middle English cheep (short for phrases, as good cheep cheap, literally, good bargain), Old English cēap bargain, market, trade; cognate with German Kauf, Old Norse kaup; all
cheap′ish•ly, adv.
cheap′ly, adv.
cheap′ness, n.
- 1. 4. Cheap, inexpensive agree in their suggestion of low cost. Cheap now usually suggests shoddiness, inferiority, showy imitation, complete unworthiness, and the like:a cheap kind of fur.Inexpensive emphasizes lowness of price (although more expensive than cheap) and suggests that the value is fully equal to the cost:an inexpensive dress.It is often used as an evasion for the more specific cheap. 4. paltry, low, poor, inferior, base.
- 1. costly, dear, expensive. 8. generous, charitable.
'cheapness' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):