bankroll

[bangk-rohl]

noun

1. money in one's possession; monetary resources.

verb (used with object)

1. Informal.,  to finance; provide funds for.

   to bankroll a new play.

bankroll

/ ˈbæŋkˌrəʊl /

noun

1. a roll of currency notes

2. the financial resources of a person, organization, etc

verb

1. slang,  (tr) to provide the capital for; finance

Other Word Forms

• bankroller noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bankroll¹

First recorded in 1885–90; bank ² + roll

Example Sentences

A longtime opponent of gerrymandering, the bow-tie-wearing Palo Alto physicist bankrolled the 2010 ballot measure that created the independent commission to draw California’s congressional districts.

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One of these—Kidder, Peabody & Co.—helped bankroll the next great innovation that changed investing: the telephone.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“California will not bankroll schools that sell out their students, professors, researchers, and surrender academic freedom,” he said.

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This situation leaves open the question of whether the public has a right to know who is bankrolling a nonprofit’s activity.

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South Park has spent decades reveling in its own poor taste, but the people who bankroll the show have their limits.

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Related Words

• finance 
• subsidize