Daily Word Box

Install Daily Word Box: tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.

Idiom

gravy train

noun phrase C1
/ˈɡreɪvi treɪn/

Meanings

noun phrase

An easy source of money or benefits that continues over time, often seen as unfair or undeserved.

gravy train: An easy source of money or benefits that continues over time, often seen as unfair or undeserved.

Definition

An easy and profitable situation that provides steady benefits with little effort.

A gravy train is a job, contract, or situation that brings in a lot of money or advantages for little work or risk. It often suggests the benefits are undeserved or excessive. People may use it to criticize wasteful spending or unfair rewards.

Examples

  • He treated the consulting contract like a gravy train and stopped trying.
  • The investigation was meant to end the gravy train of no-bid deals.
  • Once the grant money dried up, the gravy train was over.
  • Critics said the program had become a gravy train for private vendors.

Common mistake

Learners sometimes use it to mean any successful business, but it specifically suggests easy, ongoing gains and often a negative judgment.

More at C1 level

More noun phrases