Phrase guide

petty cash

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Cash available for trivial purchases, especially limited funds for employees to use without close supervision.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: business

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A small to moderate fund of cash kept ready at home for household expenses.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Qualifier: home economics

Topics: business, finance

Examples

  • Near-synonyms: pocket money, spending money, walk-around money, walking-around money; pin money; beer money

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: pocket money, spending money, walk-around money, walking-around money, pin money, beer money

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a small fund of cash that a firm keeps for the payment of incidental expenses

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: fund, monetary fund

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

13 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: джобни пари (džobni pari) — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Chinese Mandarin: 零用現金 /零用现金 (língyòng xiànjīn) — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Finnish: käteiskassa — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • German: Portokasse — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Irish: mionairgead — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Malay: tunai runcit — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Māori: pūtea iti — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Polish: kasa podręczna — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Russian: мелочёвка (meločóvka) — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Russian: ме́лкая нали́чность (mélkaja nalíčnostʹ) — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Spanish: caja menor — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Swahili: fedha kichele — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business
  • Swedish: fickpengar — cash available for trivial expenses, esp. at a business