revenue

American  

[rev-uhn-yoo, -uh-noo] / ˈrɛv ənˌju, -əˌnu /

noun

revenues plural

1. the income of a government from taxation, excise duties, customs, or other sources, appropriated to the payment of the public expenses.

2. the government department charged with the collection of such income.

3. revenues, the collective items or amounts of income of a person, a state, etc.

4. the return or yield from any kind of property, patent, service, etc.; income.

5. an amount of money regularly coming in.

6. a particular item or source of income.

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revenue British  

/ ˈrɛvɪˌnjuː /

noun

1. the income accruing from taxation to a government during a specified period of time, usually a year

2. 1. a government department responsible for the collection of government revenue

   2. ( as modifier )

      revenue men

3. the gross income from a business enterprise, investment, property, etc

4. a particular item of income

5. something that yields a regular financial return; source of income

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revenue Cultural  

1. The income of local, state, or national governments.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonrevenue
  adjective
• revenual
  adjective
• revenued
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• revenues
  plural

Etymology

Origin of revenue

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, noun use of feminine past participle of revenir “to return,” from Latin revenīre, equivalent to re- re- + venīre “to come ”

Explanation

Revenue is money earned by a business, or income received by the government from taxes. The government is always interested in dreaming up new sources of revenue, and so is the average head of a company unless she doesn't want to be the head anymore. Revenue is from a French word meaning "to return or come back," and dollar returns are always a welcome thing. Declining advertising revenue will doom your website, no matter how great it is. If your lemonade stand is not making a profit, you might consider lowering costs. Maybe you could get cheaper lemonade mix? Or you might look for more creative and exciting ways to increase revenue––like raiding the pantry for cookies you can sell as well.

Example Sentences

Indeed, audited figures published last week by financial blogger Ed Zitron and the Financial Times indicate that OpenAI lost a staggering $38.5 billion in 2025 on revenue of $13.1 billion.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 23, 2026

Known as the “Danish capital of America,” the city lures in more than one million tourists a year, generating around $9 million annual in hotel and sales tax revenue, according to the New York Post.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 23, 2026

The Intel division that houses those factories, which mostly make chips that Intel itself designs, reported about $5.4 billion of revenue in the first quarter, with a $2.4 billion operational loss.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 23, 2026

That’s as market gains for those AI-related plays now “comfortably exceed” Goldman’s baseline estimate of just how much growth increased revenue linked to AI can inject into the U.S. economy.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 23, 2026

If this merchant couple did agree to a patronage, it would add not only prestige but new revenue for the zoo.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

Related Words

• credit
• dividend
• earnings
• fund
• gain
• interest
• pay
• proceeds
• receipt
• return
• salary
• stock
• wealth
• yield