dimes

Meanings

1. 1nounpluralAmerican

   Small US coins, each worth ten cents; the plural form of 'dime'.

   Grammar: Countable noun: use 'a dime' for one coin and 'dimes' for more than one.

   Patterns

   • a few dimes
   • count out dimes
   • dimes and nickels

   She dropped a handful of dimes into the parking meter.

   He keeps a jar of dimes on his desk for the bus.

   Two dimes and a nickel make twenty-five cents.

2. 2nounpluralAmericaninformal

   Ten-cent amounts of money, especially when people talk about not having even a small sum.

   Grammar: Often used in negative sentences after 'not a' to mean 'no money at all'.

   Patterns

   • not a dime
   • not have a dime
   • without a dime

   After paying the rent, he didn't have a dime left.

   They left the restaurant without a dime in their pockets.

   She said she wouldn't spend a dime on that old car.

Word forms

Common combinations

a dime a dozen

Cheap phone cases are a dime a dozen these days.

on a dime

The little car can turn on a dime.

not worth a dime

That broken old radio isn't worth a dime.

dime store

My grandmother bought her sewing thread at the dime store.

drop a dime

In old movies, criminals would drop a dime to call the police.

Synonyms and how they differ

ten-cent piece

A plain descriptive phrase for the same coin; 'dime' is the normal everyday word in the US.

coin

A much more general word for any piece of metal money, not just the ten-cent one.

Word family

dime noun

The singular form: one ten-cent coin.

dime-store adjective

Describing cheap goods of the kind sold in old five-and-ten shops.

Commonly confused: dimes or dime? dimes or dinar?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “dimes”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words