Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A percentage or share of the profits of an enterprise, especially one given or accepted as a bribe.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In gambling games, the amount or percentage taken by the house or the banker.
  • noun An amount or percentage of money taken by a party to a contract or enterprise as his share of the spoils; specifically, a share of money illegally taken in a public enterprise.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A percentage of an amount of money taken by a third-party as a bribe or as part of an unlawful enterprise.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a percentage (of winnings or loot or profit) taken by an operator or gangster

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From the rake used by a croupier in a gambling house.]

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word rake-off.

Examples

  • Much easier, says one old-lady manufacturer to a smart young gigafund manager, for her to make and market her own product, and keep the money just like Mr. Doctorow, than for him to find and fund a hundred products and take a rake-off.

    The Author as Agent of Change Tom Shippey 2011

  • Fans of Stinson's work (or those wanting to learn more) may be interested to know that a new Monograph has been published: Charles R. Stinson Architects: Compositions in Nature. (and, no, I'm not getting a rake-off on the proceeds from the book!).

    Homes By Architects Tour Wrap-Up 2008

  • They consider electrical power a great blessing -- but only when the private power companies get their rake-off.

    Who Are These Democrats? 2009

  • You could tell that the Republicans were up to their eyeballs in the Iraqi oil-for-food rake-off from all the transference-projection they did about it.

    Poll: Record High for Wrong-Track Rating - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

  • Click here to watch our new video of the leaf rake-off and see which method wins the battle.

    The fastest way to deal with leaves 2007

  • Click here to watch our new video of the leaf rake-off and see which method wins the battle.

    The fastest way to deal with leaves 2007

  • A considerable amount of tax collection is now done, in effect, by casinos; rather than raise taxes to pay for services, legislatures legalize gambling and then take a rake-off from the profits earned by private casino companies.

    The Sack of Washington Murphy, Cullen 2007

  • With the US gummint taking a sudden interest in squashing internet gambling sites, probably related to a lack of tax or graft rake-off therein, I was wondering something.

    Idle question regarding internet gambling jhetley 2006

  • Mr. Kerrigan, at the thought of these hearty aldermen accustomed to all the perquisites of graft and rake-off, leaned back and gave vent to a burst of deep-chested laughter.

    The Titan 2004

  • So there won't be much of an opportunity for a rake-off here, otherwise the whole thing will collapse.

    Presidents Interview With Kfmb ITY National Archives 1993

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.