out of pocket
1. (Paid for) with one's own personal funds. Hyphenated if used before a noun. The company is making me pay for all this equipment out of pocket! You'll have to pay for the plane tickets out of pocket, but you'll be reimbursed after you arrive. The out-of-pocket costs for these medical examinations are really straining my bank account. I hope my insurance reimburses me for some of them.
2. Lacking the adequate amount of money; poor or impoverished; having suffered a financial loss. Hyphenated if used before a noun. I get paid next week, so can we go out to dinner then? I'm just a bit out of pocket right now. The CEO drained the company's accounts and fled the country with the money, leaving behind out-of-pocket clients and investors.
3. Unavailable; away from one's desk or phone; not able to be contacted. Janet is out of pocket right now, but I can give her a message.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
out-of-pocket
COMMON Out-of-pocket expenses are costs connected with work that people pay themselves at first but are usually paid back to them later. I charge twenty dollars an hour plus out-of-pocket expenses. Note: If you pay out of pocket, you pay for something yourself and claim the money back later. As long as people have to pay out of pocket to see a physician, many people will not get the necessary care.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012