on someone's dime

English

Alternative forms

• on someone's own dime

Prepositional phrase

on someone's dime

1. (idiomatic) At the monetary expense of the person indicated.
   • 1995 December 22, Adam Green, “If Holden Caulfield Spent a Weekend in Today's Manhattan”, in New York Times, retrieved 3 June 2019:

     They challenged my knowledge of the book, suggested that my article would inevitably be lousy and concluded that J. D. Salinger would be disgusted by what I was doing—all the while drinking on my dime.

   • 2001 September 23, John Cloud, “The Plot Comes Into Focus”, in Time, retrieved 3 June 2019:

     Their simple lives contrast sharply with the multimillion-dollar rumors surrounding Osama bin Laden. […] [T]hey weren't living large on his dime.

   • 2011 December 19, Sebastian Doggart, “Green Card, Golden Ticket”, in Telegraph, UK, retrieved 3 June 2019:

     But if you’re a Haitian, Mexican, or Brit and you step on American soil and are then detained by US officials, without a visa, you’ll be on the next boat back home—and on your dime too.

See also

• out of one's own pocket