Question

Pay through the Nose to pay too much for something

Accepted Answer

In that restaurant, you'll pay through the nose for a meal. Here's an idiom from the 1600s. "Rhino" was once a slang word for money, but originally it was the Greek word for nose. The two words are similar in sound and their meanings might have come together to make this expression. Another possibility comes from Danish authorities charging Irish people a poll tax in the 9th century and cutting off or slitting the noses of those who failed to pay their taxes. There's also a gambling origin tied to "bleeding" a player—duping him to lose all his money. Now, if you "pay through the nose," you'd be paying an extremely expensive price for something. A related body-part saying is "pay an arm and a leg."

Idiom	Pay through the Nose
Example	In that restaurant, you'll pay through the nose for a meal.
Meaning	to pay too much for something
Origin	Here's an idiom from the 1600s. "Rhino" was once a slang word for money, but originally it was the Greek word for nose. The two words are similar in sound and their meanings might have come together to make this expression. Another possibility comes from Danish authorities charging Irish people a poll tax in the 9th century and cutting off or slitting the noses of those who failed to pay their taxes. There's also a gambling origin tied to "bleeding" a player—duping him to lose all his money. Now, if you "pay through the nose," you'd be paying an extremely expensive price for something. A related body-part saying is "pay an arm and a leg."

Pay Nose Word Restaurant Meal Idiom 1600s Rhino