under-the-counter
(of merchandise) sold clandestinely.
illegal; unauthorized: under-the-counter payments.
Origin of under-the-counter
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use under-the-counter in a sentence
“Because of a few who make themselves rich from politics and under-the-counter money, all of us have to pay,” she blogged.
Italy’s Politicians Revealed by P.M. as Highest Paid in Europe | Barbie Latza Nadeau | January 4, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Other Idioms and Phrases with under-the-counter
Secretly, surreptitiously, as in I'm sure they're selling liquor to minors under the counter. This expression most often alludes to an illegal transaction, the counter being the flat-surfaced furnishing or table over which legal business is conducted. It was first recorded in 1926. Also see under the table.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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