Definition

1. Noun:
   • A small amount of extra money for personal or minor expenses: "Pin money" refers to a modest sum of cash, often given or earned, intended for small, non-essential purchases or personal incidentals.

Usage

• The term is used to describe discretionary funds for small, everyday items, not for major bills or necessities.
• It often carries a somewhat dated or informal connotation, historically associated with money given to a wife for her personal use.
• It emphasizes the small, incidental nature of the expenses.

Examples

• Noun:
  • She saves her earnings from the craft fair as pin money for books and coffee.
  • He gives himself a little pin money each week to spend on whatever he likes.
  • In the past, it was common for a husband to provide his wife with pin money for her personal needs.

Advanced Usage

• "For pin money": indicating the purpose of earning or having the funds.
  • She took on a part-time job just for pin money.
• The concept can be used metaphorically to emphasize a small, supplementary amount.
  • The dividend payment is just pin money compared to his salary.

Variants and Related Words

• Pocket money (n): a very similar term, more commonly used today, especially for money given to children.
• Spending money (n): cash available for personal expenses.
• Discretionary income (n): a more formal economic term for income remaining after necessities are paid for.

Synonyms

• Pocket money
• Spending cash
• Allowance (in the context of personal spending money)

Idioms

• While "pin money" itself is an idiomatic noun phrase, it is not typically part of a larger idiom. Its meaning is contained within the phrase.

Noun

1. cash for day-to-day spending on incidental expenses