TNSTAAFL

Name: TNSTAAFL Mug
Brand: Urban Dictionary
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/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."

TNSTAAFL by somnambulist June 11, 2006

Words you can keep

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.

TANSTAAFL by Depherios November 15, 2003

Related Words

TNSTAAFL • tanstaafl • tinstaafl

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

TANSTAAFL by Guesty Sueless May 31, 2010

tanstaafl

There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch

tanstaafl by Flamin Homer May 31, 2003

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

TANSTAAFL by JBLuverxo<3 November 18, 2011

tinstaafl

there is no such thing as a free lunch; for everything everywhere, someone somewhere had to work for it

When Bob tried to get away with cheating on his math test, his teacher said, "Tinstaafl," and gave him a score of zero.

tinstaafl by Jim Downard October 4, 2003

TINSTAAFL

ACRONYM FOR: There's No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.

TINSTAAFL means get a job, you mooch!

TINSTAAFL by Muse4U August 1, 2006

caillou

A slang term used to describe a bald person, typically someone who is completely bald or has a closely shaved head. The term is derived from the infamous, hairless kids’ cartoon character of the same name.

Example 1:
“Did you see that caillou over there? His head is reflecting the sun like a disco ball.”
Example 2:
“I think Dave is finally accepting his hair loss. He just went full caillou and shaved the whole thing off.”

caillou by WMH01 September 12, 2026

Word of the Day on September 13, 2026

Brought-upsy

scruples; to have manners;

May also be spelt Brought-upsie

WestIndian/Caribbean in orient - Barbados, WHUT.

Example 1: Child, you ain't got no brought-upsy?

Translation: My Child, have you not any manners?

Example 2: What, you ain't got no brought-upsy?

Translation: I can't believe you're doing that. Were you not taught any manners as a child?

Brought-upsy by B-Town Gilly April 20, 2005

Word of the Day on September 12, 2026

kitbash

The practice of modifying a model (not limited to toy action figures) to achieve some result other than that intended by the manufacturer. ...

I had to kitbash my Luke Skywalker figure with my Darth Vader figure because Luke was missing a hand.

kitbash by geru January 15, 2006

Word of the Day on September 11, 2026

Satellite baddies

Attractive women who are far from your location.

There are no hot girls in the area, theres only satellite baddies.

Satellite baddies by Banksy123 September 5, 2026

Word of the Day on September 10, 2026

Rammys

-Ramifications

-shorthand for the ramifications of actions

“Omg, the ramifications!”
-“You forgot about the rammys, bro.”

Rammys by Brandonmical August 4, 2023

Word of the Day on September 9, 2026

Failure Shower

When you fail at something in life (eg. failing an exam or not getting a job), go home and spend an hour just standing in the shower, propping yourself up against the wall with your eyes on your feet.

Caleb knew the only thing to do after he didnt get prefect was take a failure shower.

Failure Shower by Vikingnz October 27, 2009

Word of the Day on September 8, 2026