Phrase guide

you get what you pay for

proverb · 1 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

proverb

Meaning 1

In commercial transactions, the prices increase, as the quality of goods and services increases, i.e., the more one pays, the higher-quality the merchandise.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: YGWYPF

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

19 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Cantonese: 一分錢,一分貨 /一分钱 — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Chinese Cantonese: 一分货 (jat1 fan1 cin4, jat1 fan1 fo3) — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Chinese Mandarin: 一分錢,一分貨 /一分钱 — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Chinese Mandarin: 一分货 (yī fēn qián, yī fēn huò) — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Danish: du får, hvad du betaler for — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Finnish: sitä saat, mitä tilaat — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • French: en avoir pour son argent — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • German: Qualität hat ihren Preis — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Hungarian: olcsó húsnak híg a leve — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Indonesian: ada rupa, ada harga — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Japanese: 安物買いの銭失い (yasumonogai no zeni ushinai) — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Polish: jakość ma swoją cenę — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Spanish: nadie da duros a pesetas — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Spanish: el que quiere celeste que le cueste — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Swedish: man får vad man betalar för — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Vietnamese: tiền nào của nấy — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Vietnamese: tiền nào của đó — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Vietnamese: tiền nào của đấy — quality of goods increases as the prices increases
  • Vietnamese: tiền nào của ấy — quality of goods increases as the prices increases