Make a killing meaning in English

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Definition

to make a killing: to have financial success, to earn a lot of money, to make a big profit idiom
a killing: a murder, a homicide, a death noun

Examples

  • "I stood to make a killing"
  • "They made a killing last year, regardless of any of the bad publicity they've received over the years."
Exercise 1
Philip says, "They made a killing last year..."
This means that Shmike:

Philip says, "They made a killing last year..."
This means that Shmike:
This is not the best choice. The idiom "to make a killing" does not express that a company "suffered from negative media attention".
The idiom "to make a killing" does not express that a company "destroyed the competition". To destroy means to obliterate or completely ruin something.
The expression "to make a killing" means to make a large amount of money, or to do very well in business. It is an idiomatic expression which is used almost exclusively in a financial context to indicate that someone (a person, a company, a corporation) gained an enormous amount of money, or had an enormous amount of success.
The idiom "to make a killing" does not express that a company "terminated some employees last year". To "terminate an employee" can mean literally to "kill" an employee, but in a business context it means "to fire" an employee (or end their employment).
This is not the best choice. To "exploit" is not synonymous with the expression "to make a killing", which indicates that a person or company earned a lot of money, or had a lot of success.

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