tradeoff

(also trade-off,

/ˈtreɪdˌɔf/)

/ˈtreɪdˌɔf/ n [C]

Definition

› a balancing of two opposing situations or qualities, both of which are desired: The tradeoff in a democracy is between individual liberty and an orderly society. › A tradeoff is also a situation in which the achieving of something you want involves the loss of something else which is also desirable, but less so: They both had successful careers, but the tradeoff was they seldom saw each other.

(Definition of tradeoff n from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)