What it means
Money, plain and simple, the cash you need to make things happen. Got the dough for that holiday? Rolling in dough means loaded, short on dough means skint. It is warm, casual and a bit old-school cool, the kind of word that slips into talk about wages, rent or a big night out without sounding flash.
Usage examples
"He has been rolling in dough since the business took off, but he still drives that rusty old van."
"We pooled our dough and got a massive shared house instead of five tiny flats."
"I would love to come to the festival but I just have not got the dough this month, maybe next year."
"I can't be doing rooftop cocktails tonight, I'm proper low on dough till payday."
"She made a bit of dough flipping vintage chairs online, fair play to her."
Where it comes from
"Dough" for money is well attested in English from the mid 19th century. It grew out of the older idea of bread meaning livelihood or everyday cash. Same pantry logic, really. If bread is what keeps you going, dough is the raw stuff behind it, so the word slid neatly into money talk.
Other ways to say it
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