Meaning & use
cheap person
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Meanings
phrasecountableinformaldisapproving
Someone who rarely spends money or gives generously, often seen as ungenerous.
Grammar: Countable phrase: a cheap person, two cheap people. 'People' is the usual plural.
Patterns
- a cheap person
- be a cheap person
- call someone a cheap person
He never pays for anything; everyone says he is a cheap person.
She is not poor, just a cheap person who hates wasting money.
Don't be a cheap person — buy your friend a proper birthday present.
phrasecountableinformaldisapproving
Someone who buys low-quality goods or services only because they cost little.
Grammar: Countable phrase; often used after 'be' or 'become'.
Patterns
- be a cheap person
- become a cheap person
As a cheap person, he always chooses the cheapest option, even when it breaks quickly.
Being a cheap person can cost you more in the long run.
Word forms
| plural | cheap people |
|---|
Common combinations
- a cheap person
- My uncle is a cheap person who never tips.
- call someone a cheap person
- It is rude to call someone a cheap person in public.
- be a cheap person
- She is a cheap person, but she saves a lot.
- a really cheap person
- He is a really cheap person — he reuses tea bags.
Synonyms and how they differ
- miser
- A stronger and more formal word for someone who hates spending money; it suggests an extreme, almost unhealthy attitude.
- skinflint
- An informal, slightly old-fashioned word for a very ungenerous person; it is more insulting than 'cheap person'.
- tightwad
- Informal and often humorous; it means about the same but is more direct and slangy.
- frugal person
- A neutral or approving phrase for someone who manages money carefully; it does not carry the criticism of 'cheap person'.
Opposites
Word family
- cheap adjective
- Costing little money, or of low quality.
- cheaply adverb
- In a way that costs little money.
- cheapness noun
- The quality of being cheap.
- cheapskate noun
- Informal word for a person who avoids spending money.
Commonly confused: cheap person or cheep? cheap person or cheat?
cheap person vs cheep
A different word meaning the short, high sound a young bird makes. 'Cheap person' is about money; 'cheep' is about sound.
cheap person vs cheat
To cheat is to act dishonestly to win or gain something. A cheap person is not necessarily dishonest, just unwilling to spend.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'cheap person' correctly and naturally?
Choose one answer.
A cheap person dislikes spending money, so buying the cheapest coffee fits. Option 1 is wrong because giving expensive gifts is the opposite. Option 2 is wrong because cheap people usually save rather than spend. Option 3 is wrong because generosity contradicts the meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cheap person”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.