Zero-sum

adj

adj ·3 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Of a system, where all gains are offset by exactly equal losses. not-comparable

    "Dalio is right, but somewhat self-serving. If hedge-fund managers are playing a zero-sum game, what is their social utility? […] Can it really be in America’s interest to have so much of its young talent playing a zero-sum game?"

Example

More examples

"A zero-sum game is a game in which any player's winnings are balanced by the other players' losses."

Related phrases

zero-sum game

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.