Meaning & use
zero-sum game
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Meanings
nouncountable
A situation in which whatever one person or side gains is exactly equal to what another loses, so the total never changes.
Grammar: Countable and often with a: negotiation is not a zero-sum game; these are zero-sum games.
Patterns
- a zero-sum game between people
- treat something as a zero-sum game
Poker is a zero-sum game, since every dollar won is a dollar lost by someone else.
Some people see office promotions as a zero-sum game.
Trade does not have to be a zero-sum game, because both countries can benefit.
nouncountabletechnicalmathematics
In game theory, a formal model of competition in which the payoffs of all players always add up to zero.
Grammar: Technical sense, often with the or a: the theory of zero-sum games.
Patterns
- a two-player zero-sum game
Chess can be analyzed as a two-player zero-sum game.
The professor explained how to solve a zero-sum game with a matrix.
Economists contrast a zero-sum game with a cooperative game.
Word forms
| plural | zero-sum games |
|---|
Common combinations
- not a zero-sum game
- Education is not a zero-sum game.
- play a zero-sum game
- Negotiators who play a zero-sum game rarely reach agreement.
- treat as a zero-sum game
- Politicians sometimes treat the budget as a zero-sum game.
- zero-sum game mentality
- A zero-sum game mentality can poison a team.
- two-player zero-sum game
- Tennis is a two-player zero-sum game in the narrow sense.
Synonyms and how they differ
- win-lose situation
- Win-lose situation is a plain everyday phrase, while zero-sum game adds the idea that the totals exactly balance.
- fixed-pie
- Fixed-pie describes a belief that resources cannot grow, which is the thinking behind a zero-sum view.
- dog-eat-dog
- Dog-eat-dog is an informal phrase for a ruthless contest, but it does not suggest a fixed total.
Opposites
Word family
- zero-sum adjective
- describing a situation where one side's gain equals the other's loss
- non-zero-sum adjective
- describing a situation where all sides can gain or lose together
- zero number
- the number 0
- game theory noun
- the study of strategic choices between competitors
Commonly confused: zero-sum game or win-win? zero-sum game or no-win situation?
zero-sum game vs win-win
A win-win situation benefits everyone, which is the opposite of a zero-sum game.
zero-sum game vs no-win situation
A no-win situation means every choice leads to a bad result. A zero-sum game has winners but they gain exactly what others lose.
Practice
Two companies split a market of fixed size, so any customer one gains is lost by the other. This is an example of a ___.
Choose one answer.
A zero-sum game means one side's gain equals the other side's loss, as with a fixed market. A win-win partnership would let both sides benefit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “zero-sum game”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.