out-of-pocket

[ out-uhv-pok-it ]

adjective

1. paid out in cash or from one's own financial resources and sometimes reimbursed:

   My out-of-pocket travel expenses included taking business clients to dinner.

2. without funds or assets:

   an out-of-pocket student who stayed with us.

out of pocket

adjective

1. postpositive having lost money, as in a commercial enterprise
2. without money to spend
3. prenominal (of expenses) unbudgeted and paid for in cash

Word History and Origins

Origin of out-of-pocket¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

Such worries have become more widespread recently as the biomarker blood tests, marketed by companies like Quest and Labcorp, became commercially available so that patients could pay for them out of pocket.

From Los Angeles Times

Alternately, a victory for the government in the courts could leave a major employer out of pocket.

From BBC

Now, former clients tell the BBC they have been left thousands of pounds out of pocket and “in the lurch” by authorities, while Archie has declared himself bankrupt.

From BBC

Those who have been left out of pocket, like Thea, feel “let down” by the industry.

From BBC

Or ‘If I see something crazy or out of pocket, I can be funny, too.’

From Slate

Related Words

• amount
• budget
• charge
• consumption
• debt
• expenditure
• insurance
• investment
• liability
• loan
• loss
• mortgage
• obligation
• outlay
• payroll
• price
• price tag
• rate
• risk
• spending