gate-money
Definition
- Noun (uncountable):
- Revenue from ticket sales: "gate-money" refers to the total amount of money collected from spectators who pay admission to attend a sporting event, concert, or other public performance. The term emphasizes the income generated at the entrance (the "gate") rather than from other sources.
Usage Examples
- (The club earns most of its revenue from tickets sold to spectators.)
- (The total money from ticket sales was tallied.)
- (Fewer people bought tickets, so the revenue was lower.)
Advanced Usage
- "Gate-money" is often used in contrast to other revenue streams like broadcasting rights, sponsorship, or concessions.
- The stadium's renovation was funded largely by gate-money from last season's games. (The construction was paid for by ticket sales.)
- In historical contexts, "gate-money" was the primary financial support for many sports clubs before television deals became dominant.
- In the 1920s, most professional teams relied entirely on gate-money to pay players.
Variants and Related Words
- Gate (noun): the entrance to a venue; also used as a shorthand for gate-money in British English.
- The gate for today's match was over £50,000. (The total ticket revenue was £50,000.)
- Gate receipt (noun): a formal term for the record of gate-money collected.
- The gate receipts were audited after the event. (The ticket sales records were checked.)
- Gate-crash (verb): to enter an event without paying.
- Several fans tried to gate-crash the concert, but security stopped them. (They attempted to enter without buying tickets.)
Synonyms
- Box office takings: the money earned from ticket sales at a venue.
- Admission fees: the charges paid for entry.
- Ticket revenue: income generated from selling tickets.
Related Idioms
- Gate-money does not have its own idioms, but it is often used in the phrase "live off gate-money", meaning to depend solely on ticket sales for income.
- Small clubs often live off gate-money and struggle to survive. (They rely entirely on spectator payments.)