1
: a balancing of factors all of which are not attainable at the same time
Governments face a trade-off between privacy and increasing the effectiveness of tax collection.—
Ricardo Perez-Truglia and Ugo Troiano
Ricardo Perez-Truglia and Ugo Troiano2
: a giving up of one thing in return for another : exchange
trade off
transitive verb
Examples of trade-off in a Sentence
a trade-off in which a company got a celebrity spokesperson and a fading star got some much-needed cash
Recent Examples on the Web
Carbon steel tends to be cheaper than the specialized supersteel alloys, so some home cooks don’t mind the trade-off of higher maintenance for better value.
—Jesse Raub, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 May 2026
That said, annuities do come with trade-offs.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 1 May 2026
Design trade-offs The point at which the stingers usually snap, the researchers say, is at the zone where zinc enrichment at the tip abruptly stops and transitions into manganese.
—Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 1 May 2026
Of course, the new security mode comes with some trade-offs, especially for account recovery.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for trade-off
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Jesse Raub, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 May 2026
That said, annuities do come with trade-offs.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 1 May 2026
Design trade-offs The point at which the stingers usually snap, the researchers say, is at the zone where zinc enrichment at the tip abruptly stops and transitions into manganese.
—Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 1 May 2026
Of course, the new security mode comes with some trade-offs, especially for account recovery.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for trade-off
Cite this Entry
“Trade-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trade-off. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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