At one's expense meaning in English
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Definition
at the public's expense: with a cost or detriment to the public
at one's own expense at one's own cost, expenditure
at the expense of (someone): to the detriment of, to the cost of (someone)
Examples
- "The most common way to become a manager is to be given a promotion, often at the expense of your colleagues who think they deserve the position more than you."
Exercise 1
The author writes that a common way to be a manager is to be given a promotion at the expense of your colleagues.
What does he mean by this?
What does he mean by this?
The author writes that a common way to be a manager is to be given a promotion at the expense of your colleagues.
What does he mean by this?
What does he mean by this?
This is incorrect. This does not mean that your colleagues will thank you, on the contrary they will probably resent you for getting the promotion.
This is incorrect. "At the expense of" does not imply any sense of hard work.
This does not mean that your colleagues will give you their blessing, on the contrary they will probably resent you for getting the promotion. A "blessing" is an act of approval.
This is the correct answer. "At the expense of" means to the detriment or harm of. This sentence means that you will get a promotion in place of your colleagues (who will be hurt or harmed in some way as a result). Another example: Oil companies are getting rich at the expense of the environment.
Exercise 2
Susie talks about the offices being built "at the taxpayer's expense". What does she mean by this?
Susie talks about the offices being built "at the taxpayer's expense". What does she mean by this?
This is the best choice here. Susie implies that the citizens (the taxpayers) will have to pay for the construction of the government offices.
Although "at" is often used as a preposition of place, Susie is using the idiom "at the taxpayer's expense" in a different sense.
Although the cost of this construction will be expensive, Susie's question does not indicate how much the construction will cost, only that the people of the city are responsible for the cost.
Susie's statement does not indicate that the building will be used for tax collectors, but that the taxpayers must pay for the building.
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