For love or money
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
Under any circumstances or by any inducement, most often used after a negative. Usually appears in a negative clause. Outside that construction it may literally ask whether affection or payment is the motive. Regional use: English origin; now international English.
Origin
The pairing contrasts affection or goodwill with payment, the two broad motives that might persuade someone. The sense 'for anything' is attested from the 1580s, and negative forms such as 'not for love nor money' became especially idiomatic. Modern positive uses can literally contrast romantic and financial motives, but the fixed idiom normally intensifies impossibility.
Research Sources
Variants
- Not for love or money
- For love nor money
- Not for love nor money
Usage Examples
- We could not find a spare room for love or money during the festival.
- He would not reveal the password for love nor money.
- By noon there was no fresh bread to be had for love or money.