cash cow

noun

1
: a consistently profitable business, property, or product whose profits are used to finance a company's investments in other areas
2
: one regarded or exploited as a reliable source of money
a singer deemed a cash cow for the record label

Examples of cash cow in a Sentence

The football team was a cash cow for the university. The movie studio saw the actress as a cash cow.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Digital advertising has long been the cash cow for other big tech companies like Google and Meta, but OpenAI's move was ridiculed by its chief rival, Anthropic, which made OpenAI's ad push the focus of its first Super Bowl campaign. — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026 But being away from his family wasn’t easy, especially in an industry that sometimes treats young players as cash cows. — Ben Church, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026 To be sure, Premier League teams are not necessarily cash cows. — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 30 July 2026 The tech companies without Google’s cash cows will be left in an even weaker spot, which explains why Meta is hustling to launch its own cloud business. — Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 23 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for cash cow

Word History

First Known Use

1972, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cash cow was in 1972

Rhymes for cash cow

See All Rhymes for cash cow

Browse Nearby Words

cash contract
cash cow
cash credit
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cash cow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cash%20cow. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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