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TANSTAAF

Short for "There 'aint such thing as a free lunch."
self explanatory ;)
by blizblaz March 3, 2004
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TANSTAAFL

Acronym for: "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

Accredited to author Robert A. Heinlein in his novel "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress"
TANSTAAFL is the golden rule.
by Depherios November 15, 2003
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Related Words

TANSTAAFL

Abbreviation

A common shorthand for the colloquialism "There ain't no such things as a free lunch" implying that anything, as free as it may appear, has a real hidden cost.
(SMS)

Fred: WTF!? My stay was comped, but at checkout they charged me 4 the cable, phone, and internet!

Barney: TANSTAAFL
by Guesty Sueless May 31, 2010
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tanstaafl

by Flamin Homer May 31, 2003
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TNSTAAFL

/TAN-staf-ful/ intj,n,v: "There's no such thing as a free lunch." Coined from Robert Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land." Ended up on the Martian flag.

Also appears in several other Heinlein novels, including "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress," where all restaurants served the meal free, but charged heftily for beverages, etc.

More widely used around the time the book was first published, but can still be found circulating in dark basement apartments and gaming stores everywhere.
"I told you she'd be wanting payback for those smokes, man. TNSTAAFL."

"I answered that ad for a free RAZR and now all I get in my inbox is spam. TNSTAAFL strikes again."

"That new pizza joint totally TNSTAAFLed us."
by somnambulist June 11, 2006
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tanstaach

acronym, also used as interjection, standing for:

there ain't no such thing as a champagne hangover

usually used, when people brag about their champagne consumption, esp. after they drunk large amounts of champagne for free. see also: domp
a: man, I've got such a hangover from last nigh's champagne galore, i really did domp me through

b: tanstaach!

a: wtf?

c: there ain't no such thing as a champagne hangover!
by pfenech October 2, 2009
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TANSTAAFL

T.here A.in't N.o S.uch T.hing A.s A. F.ree L.unch
Something advertised as being "free" will invariably have hidden costs.
Kid: Woah, why does Facebook have a whole bunch of Ads on their site all of a sudden?
Teacher: TANSTAAFL
by JBLuverxo<3 November 18, 2011
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