verb phrase🎓 English idiom

pay through the nose

to pay far too much

What it means

To pay through the nose means to pay far too much for something, an excessive or unreasonable price. It conveys a sense of being overcharged or financially squeezed.

Examples

  • We paid through the nose for tickets to the sold-out concert.
  • You'll pay through the nose for repairs at that garage.
  • Tourists often pay through the nose for water near the beach.
  • I refuse to pay through the nose just for a brand name.

Where it comes from

The origin is uncertain, but one popular and disputed theory links it to a 9th-century 'nose tax' imposed by Danes in Ireland, said to slit the noses of those who would not pay.

Related idioms

#cost an arm and a leg#make ends meet#there's no such thing as a free lunch#a dime a dozen

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