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discount

[verb dis-kount, dis-kount; noun, adjective dis-kount]
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verb (used with object)
  1. to deduct a certain amount from (a bill, charge, etc.): All bills that are paid promptly will be discounted at two percent.
  2. to offer for sale or sell at a reduced price: The store discounted all clothing for the sale.
  3. to advance or lend money with deduction of interest on (commercial paper not immediately payable).
  4. to purchase or sell (a bill or note) before maturity at a reduction based on the interest for the time it still has to run.
  5. to leave out of account; disregard: Even if we discount the irrelevant material, the thesis remains mediocre.
  6. to allow for exaggeration in (a statement, opinion, etc.): Knowing his political bias they discounted most of his story.
  7. to take into account in advance, often so as to diminish the effect of: They had discounted the effect of a decline in the stock market.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to advance or lend money after deduction of interest.
  2. to offer goods or services at a reduced price.
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noun
  1. the act or an instance of discounting.
  2. an amount deducted from the usual list price.
  3. any deduction from the nominal value.
  4. a payment of interest in advance upon a loan of money.
  5. the amount of interest obtained by one who discounts.
  6. an allowance made for exaggeration or bias, as in a report, story, etc.: Even after all the discounts are taken, his story sounds phony.
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adjective
  1. selling or offered at less than the usual or established price: discount theater tickets.
  2. selling goods at a discount: a discount drugstore.
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Idioms
  1. at a discount,
    1. Commerce.below par.
    2. below the usual list price.
    3. in low esteem or regard: His excuses were taken at a discount by all who knew him.
    4. not in demand; unwanted: Such ancient superstitions are at a discount in a civilized society.
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Origin of discount

1615–25; dis-1 + count1, modeled on French décompter, Old French desconter < Medieval Latin discomputāre
Related formsdis·count·a·ble, adjectivenon·dis·count, adjectivenon·dis·count·a·ble, adjectivenon·dis·count·ed, adjectiveo·ver·dis·count, verb (used with object)pre·dis·count, noun, verb (used with object)pre·dis·count·a·ble, adjectivesu·per·dis·count, nounun·dis·count·a·ble, adjectiveun·dis·count·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

reasonablypoorlycheapmoderatelyadvantageouslydiscountedshabbilyshoddily
British Dictionary definitions for at a discount

discount

verb (dɪsˈkaʊnt, ˈdɪskaʊnt) (mainly tr)
  1. to leave out of account as being unreliable, prejudiced, or irrelevant
  2. to anticipate and make allowance for, often so as to diminish the effect of
    1. to deduct (a specified amount or percentage) from the usual price, cost, etc
    2. to reduce (the regular price, cost, etc) by a stated percentage or amount
  4. to sell or offer for sale at a reduced price
  5. to buy or sell (a bill of exchange, etc) before maturity, with a deduction for interest determined by the time to maturity and also by risk
  6. (also intr) to loan money on (a negotiable instrument that is not immediately payable) with a deduction for interest determined by risk and time to maturity
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noun (ˈdɪskaʊnt)
  1. a deduction from the full amount of a price or debt, as in return for prompt payment or to a special group of customersSee also cash discount, trade discount
  2. Also called: discount rate
    1. the amount of interest deducted in the purchase or sale of or the loan of money on unmatured negotiable instruments
    2. the rate of interest deducted
    1. (in the issue of shares) a percentage deducted from the par value to give a reduced amount payable by subscribers
    2. the amount by which the par value of something, esp shares, exceeds its market valueCompare premium (def. 3)
  4. the act or an instance of discounting a negotiable instrument
  5. at a discount
    1. below the regular price
    2. (of share values) below par
    3. held in low regard; not sought after or valued
  6. (modifier) offering or selling at reduced pricesa discount shop
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Derived Formsdiscountable, adjectivediscounter, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for at a discount

discount

n.

1620s, "abatement," alteration of 16c. French descompte, from Medieval Latin discomputus (source of Italian disconto), from discomputare (see discount (v.)). Meaning "deduction for early payment" is from 1680s; meaning "reduction in the price of goods" attested by 1837.

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discount

v.

1620s, "reckon as an abatement or deduction," from Old French desconter (13c., Modern French décompter), from Medieval Latin discomputare, from dis- (see dis-) + computare "to count" (see count (v.)). Hence, "to abate, deduct" (1650s), and figurative sense "to leave out of account, disregard" (1702). Related: Discounted; discounting.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with at a discount

at a discount

At a lower than usual price; also, held in low esteem. For example, I'm holding off on buying a computer until I can get one at a discount, or Liberals are at a discount in the present administration. The first usage, mainly found in business and commerce, dates from about 1700. The figurative usage is about a century newer.

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discount

see at a discount.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.