| gen. |
zero-sum game (a situation in which what is gained by one person or group is lost by another person or group. OALD. Dividing up the budget is a zero-sum game. MWALD. A game in which the participants are determining the distribution of a fixed total of costs or benefits between them. market share, for example, sum to 100 per cent by definition, so one firm's gain is another firm's loss. Zero-sum games are contrasted with positive-sum games, where gains for all participants are possible, for example international trade, and with negative-sum games, where the contest reduces the prize, for example war over the possession of resources. OE. ▪ Law is not, in most cases, a zero-sum game. ▪ The Alliance Party insists that the conflict is not a zero-sum game but very few people are impressed by it. ▪ This appears to be a zero-sum game, because what one developing country gains is at the expense of another. LDOCE Alexander Demidov) |
