Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (orig. US) mean, stingy.

1897		Kansas City Jrnl (MO) 29 Nov. 6/5: A rich girl had married a cheap-skate lawyer. The marriage had deteriorated as marriage with cheap skates does .
1899		Chicago Eagle (IL) 4 Mar. 2/1: We will pass out the usual amount to the $100 men, as we call the cheapskate aldermen.
1907		C. M’Govern By Bolo and Krag 181: I do suppose you cheap skate regulars are as dry as blazes, – and haven’t got the price.
1956		Mad mag. Summer 3: You no-good cheapskate bums reading mad for free – pay money or put it back!
1999		Indep. 3 Dec. 7: Cheapskate Britain turns nose up at £75,000 a night to hire a castle.

2. second-rate.

1917		F. Packard Adventures of Jimmie Dale (1918) I ix: D’youse t’ink dis is a tee-ayter, an’ dat youse are a cheap-skate actor strollin’ acrost de stage?
1928		M. Bodenheim Georgie May 38: They really considered themselves ‘ladies of leisure’ and not mere cheap-skate scum.
1937		‘Boxcar Bertha’ Sister of the Road (1975) 205: That’s all they were, just cheap-skate, petty larceny bus-boys.