To break the bank ✂️🏦💰
Meaning
To be extremely expensive or costly.
Origin
Imagine a time when banks were physical structures, not just digital entries. These early banks held vast reserves of money, often in a literal 'bank' of coins or gold. To 'break' such a bank wouldn't just mean to steal some cash; it implied a complete, catastrophic emptying of its coffers. This idea of depleting a massive resource, of taking so much that nothing was left, morphed over time. It evolved from a literal act of immense financial plunder to a metaphorical expression for spending an exorbitant amount of money that leaves you with nothing.
To break the bank represented with emoji✂️🏦💰
This playful arrangement of scissors, a bank, and money bags functions as a delightful visual pun. It teaches the viewer not just the literal meaning of symbols, but invites a dialogue on the very idea of financial excess. Note how the simple icons combine to subvert the notion of a safe and sound financial institution, instead evoking a sense of potential depletion or a daring financial maneuver.
Examples
- That fancy new smartphone looks amazing, but it's too expensive and would break the bank.
- We'd love to go on a world cruise, but it would definitely break the bank.
- Buying a solid gold unicycle for my pet hamster might break the bank, but he deserves it.
- I'm considering adopting ten miniature dragons, but I suspect their caviar diet will break the bank.
Frequently asked questions
'To break the bank' is an idiom. Idioms are phrases whose meaning cannot be deduced from the literal meanings of the words, unlike proverbs which often offer advice or a general truth.
An opposite of 'to break the bank' could be 'to save up' or 'to make a killing'. 'To save up' implies accumulating money, while 'to make a killing' suggests earning a large profit easily, both contrasting with the idea of excessive spending.
While primarily used for financial expenses, 'to break the bank' can metaphorically describe something that requires an extreme, unsustainable expenditure of effort or resources. However, its core meaning remains tied to excessive cost.
The exact origin of 'to break the bank' is difficult to pinpoint to a single person. Its roots seem to lie in the literal act of bankrupting a gambling establishment, which became a common trope in literature by the 19th century.