revenue

American  

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

noun

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

• nonrevenue
  adjective
• revenual
  adjective
• revenued
  adjective

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

Every company presentation touted advancements in the ability to target consumers now that advertising has become the main source of revenue growth in the streaming business.

From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2026

Wall Street expects approximately 10% growth in Valmont’s infrastructure business, which is 70% of the company’s revenue.

From Barron's • May 15, 2026

Private consumption likely moderated, as fiscal stimulus support waned, said ANZ Research’s Kausani Basak, noting the tourism sector’s revenue also contracted.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

Big banks have already been acquiescing to Musk’s unusual demands, including paying up front for Grok subscriptions, thus juicing SpaceX’s flagging A.I. revenue.

From Slate • May 15, 2026

There were a lot of numbers and words like deduction and revenue and net.

From "Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus" by Dusti Bowling

Related Words

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