zero-sum

American  

[zeer-oh-suhm] / ˈzɪər oʊˌsʌm /

adjective

1. of or denoting a system in which the sum of the gains equals the sum of the losses.

   a zero-sum economy.

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Etymology

Origin of zero-sum

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

And it should put to bed the idea that banks and private-capital managers are playing a zero-sum game with each other.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

“Now there’s a record. It’s easy when you’re the activist fighting the system. But when you’re in there, you realize it’s a zero-sum game,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 17, 2026

“To the victor nations go the spoils,” Anton wrote in a 2019 essay in Foreign Policy, crystallizing a worldview that sees international relations as zero-sum competition where might makes right.

From Salon • Jan. 7, 2026

Alphabet’s offerings have improved, Reitzes said, but the AI trade “will still take a while to play out, and it could end up that AI is not “a zero-sum game.”

From MarketWatch • Nov. 24, 2025

The customer who plays zero-sum games against them may win from time to time but never systematically, and never so spectacularly that he bankrupts the casino.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis