Meanings
plural arms and legs
- excessiveidiomaticUsually used after the verb cost, but also often charge, pay, and spend: a very high price for an item or service; an exorbitant price
I paid an arm and a leg for those tickets.
5 more examples
I would have liked to have gone to the concert, but the tickets cost an arm and a leg.
They were hoping to have some cash left over, but the tickets cost them an arm and a leg.
That Polack costs me an arm and a leg, he thought.
1954, Commentary, volume 18, American Jewish Committee, page 448Bangle bracelets in fourteen-karat gold that do not cost an arm and a leg are always in demand.
1960 March 29, “Slim waists prompted new sportswear line”, in The New York Times, page 44Her house was fabulous, her tits perfection – besides – the Beverly Hills Hotel was costing him an arm and a leg.
2008, Jackie Collins, Hollywood Wives, Pan Macmillan, →ISBN, page 417Synonyms: pretty penny, fortune, king's ransom
Synonyms & antonyms
nounUsually used after the verb cost, but also often charge, pay, and spend: a very high price for an item or service; an exorbitant price
Translations
Catalan colló de mico
- colló de micoexorbitant amount
Chinese Mandarin 天價 /天价, 昂貴 /昂贵
- 天價 /天价 (tiānjià)exorbitant amount
- 昂貴 /昂贵 (ángguì)exorbitant amount
Danish det hvide ud af øjnene
- det hvide ud af øjneneexorbitant amount
Dutch een rib uit het lijf
- een rib uit het lijfexorbitant amount
Finnish maksaa mansikoita, maksaa maltaita
- maksaa mansikoitaexorbitant amount
- maksaa maltaitaexorbitant amount
French coûter les yeux de la tête, coûter la peau des fesses
- coûter les yeux de la têteexorbitant amount
- coûter la peau des fessesexorbitant amount
- coûter la peau du culexorbitant amount
German ein Germogens kosten, Kopf und Kragen kosten
- ein Germogens kostenexorbitant amount
- Kopf und Kragen kostenexorbitant amount
Hungarian borsos ár, a gatyája is rámegy
- borsos árexorbitant amount
- a gatyája is rámegyexorbitant amount
Italian occhio della testa
- occhio della testaexorbitant amount
Norwegian Bokmål det hvite ut av øynene
- det hvite ut av øyneneexorbitant amount
Polish zawrotna suma
- zawrotna sumaexorbitant amount
Portuguese olho da cara
- olho da caraexorbitant amount
Russian сто́ить це́лое состоя́ние, кру́гленькая су́мма
- сто́ить це́лое состоя́ние (stóitʹ céloje sostojánije)exorbitant amount
- кру́гленькая су́мма (krúglenʹkaja súmma)exorbitant amount
Spanish riñón, ojo de la cara
- riñónexorbitant amount
- ojo de la caraexorbitant amount
Swedish skjortan, kosta skjortan
- skjortanexorbitant amount
- kosta skjortanexorbitant amount
Ukrainian коштувати цілий статок, кругленька сума
- коштувати цілий статок (koštuvaty cilyj statok)exorbitant amount
- кругленька сума (kruhlenʹka suma)exorbitant amount
Vietnamese giá cắt cổ, giá trên trời
- giá cắt cổexorbitant amount
- giá trên trờiexorbitant amount
Cite this entry
an arm and a leg. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/an%20arm%20and%20a%20leg
“an arm and a leg.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/an%20arm%20and%20a%20leg. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “an arm and a leg,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/an%20arm%20and%20a%20leg.
Source: an arm and a leg on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.