DATING can have its own kind of tariffs (Shutterstock).

The term “tariff” has been in the news lately, and there’s a lot of people who either aren’t familiar with the term or think it’s an informal abbreviation of the word “terrific.”

“Gee, hon, you look tariff tonight.”

What a tariff is, when you think about it, is an extra fee you pay for either something you want or to make up for some way you have given offense.

In that context, we pay tariffs all the time. Want to go to that good night club … you pay a cover charge. Want to make a good impression for a first date .. you pay for an expensive dinner at a top-notch restaurant.

On the other hand, if you forget your wife’s birthday or your wedding anniversary, you may have to drop a bundle at the jewelry store or florist shop.

(Conversely, if a woman forgets her wedding anniversary, it’s usually “no harm, no foul” because chances are pretty good he did, too).

Women are more likely to give offense by disrespecting some hobby or treasured possession of her man. “Are you going to wear that to dinner?” Or, “I can’t believe you were up until 2 a.m. playing that silly video game.”

Widen the lens and you’ll see how many other tariffs you pay. One of the most galling is the “loan origination fee.” You have to pay cash just for the privilege of borrowing money which you will probably end up paying off at three or four times the value of the loan.

College parking permits. Toll roads. That quarter at Aldi’s. A tab of $8.95 for a small soda at the cinema where the actual cost of the product is 99 cents (10 cents of syrup, nine cents of carbonated water and 80 cents for the plastic cup).

Oh, well, somebody has to pay for the date. But keep the sarcasm out of your voice when you say, “Gee, hon, isn’t this a tariffic movie?”