reimbursement

American  

[ree-im-burs-muhnt] / ˌri ɪmˈbɜrs mənt /

noun

1. repayment for an expense or loss incurred.

   Visitors will receive reimbursement for travel and housing expenses.

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Other Word Forms

• nonreimbursement
  noun

Etymology

Origin of reimbursement

reimburse ( def. ) + -ment ( def. )

Explanation

A reimbursement is a repayment for money you've already spent. When you travel for work, you get a reimbursement for your work-related expenses, like hotel bills and plane tickets, but you'll have to pay for that trip to the circus yourself. Reimbursement comes from the Latin root words re, meaning again; in, meaning into; and bursa, meaning purse. So the word reimbursement literally means in a purse again. After your parents' basement flooded, they paid to repair the damage and then got a reimbursement from the insurance company, so that they could put the money they spent in their purse again.

Example Sentences

Reimbursement for COPD, for instance, would fall nearly 20%.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Carol's experience is exactly why the Payment Systems Regulator is bringing in changes this October under the Mandatory Reimbursement Requirement.

From BBC • May 7, 2024

Reimbursement for primary medical care was 23.8 percent higher than for behavioral care, Milliman found in data for 2013 to 2017.

From Washington Post • May 25, 2022

Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan, which repays former players for out-of-pocket medical care expenses up to $350,000.

From New York Times • Sep. 8, 2021

Reimbursement to Belgium of all the sums loaned to her by the allied and associated Powers during the War.

From Peaceless Europe by Nitti, Francesco Saverio

Related Words

• payment
• remuneration
• repayment
• restitution