tinkle-down

adjective

Modification of the term "trickle-down" to criticize what is felt to be the failings of the latter, with implication that what might be passed down from the rich to the poor is minimal or undesirable.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

adjectivetinkle-down (not comparable)
  1. not comparableeconomicsModification of the term "trickle-down" to criticize what is felt to be the failings of the latter, with implication that what might be passed down from the rich to the poor is minimal or undesirable.

    America has been practicing “tinkle-down” economics for years, and it has failed us.

    2008 August 22, Jim Hightower, “More Tinkle-down Economics”, in Texas Observer
    1 more example

    It’s called “Tinkle Down Economics,” how prosperity gets passed on to the deserving, who should never look up during these troubled times.

    2018 November, Ed Spivey Jr., “Deep Breath...”, in Sojourners
Cite this entry
APA

tinkle-down. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tinkle-down

MLA

“tinkle-down.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tinkle-down. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tinkle-down,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tinkle-down.

Source: tinkle-down on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.