trade off

trade off

1. To exchange something in return for some other thing as part of a deal or compromise. I'd be willing to trade off some of my salary for the ability to work three days a week, to be honest.
2. To take turns doing something. We all trade off various chores around the house each week.
See also: off, trade
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

trade something off

 
1. Lit. to get rid of something in an exchange. I traded my car off. I traded off my old car for a new one.
2. Fig. to sacrifice something in an exchange. You may end up trading job security off for more money. Don't trade off your job security.
See also: off, trade
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

trade off

Exchange one thing for another, especially as a compromise. For example, They were willing to trade off some vacation for the freedom to work flexible hours. This idiom gave rise to tradeoff for "an exchange." [First half of 1800s]
See also: off, trade
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

trade off

v.
To take turns: My roommate and I trade off washing the dishes.
See also: off, trade
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • work both ways
  • give (one) pause for thought
  • give pause for thought
  • give pause to (one)
  • give pause to someone
  • lot of give-and-take
  • give and take
  • compromise on
  • compromise on (something)
  • come down to
References in periodicals archive
Two traits trade off when a change in one that increases fitness is linked to a change in the other that decreases fitness.
Effects on fitness components of P-element inserts in Drosophila melanogaster: analysis of trade-offs
One of the problems managers have in trying to improve the quality levels of their products, he says, is that they struggle between the trade off between cost and quality.
Sand division dinner
EPA decided to trade off its permission to sell existing stocks of the carcinogenic chemicals in exchange for an agreement by Velsicol to voluntarily cancel its pesticides -- thereby reducing the time and cost of pulling those chemicals from the market.
Chlordane deal ruled illegal
Well, the same might be said about the great consternation and uproar created when Peter MacKay promised David Orchard that he would agree to a review of free trade as a trade off in order to win the leadership of the federal Progressive Conservative Party.
Not enough talk about fair trade. (The Way It Is)
Suzanne Underwald were unreturned, but in an April 29 letter to Youngman, Underwald called Dessert Sun "clearly a pretext to justify your attempt to trade off the goodwill of our client's mark."
Duel in the sun: a web designer goes head-to-head with a media giant over a site catering to gay tourists. (The Advocate Report)
CodeBalance lets users trade off reduced code size for increased performance with an easy-to-use GUI.
GREEN HILLS THREADX REAL-TIME OS AND MULTI IDE SELECTED FOR PULMONETIC SYSTEMS' LTV VENTILATORS
Cable manufacturers trade off wire diameter for distance and even include passive cable equalization circuits inside the connector shrouds at the ends of the cable to extend the cable distance by compensating for high frequency signal loss.
Fibre Channel Building Blocks: Interconnect Elements