deposit
Americanverb (used with object)
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deposits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
deposited,
past participle, past
-
depositing
present participle
-
to place for safekeeping or in trust, especially in a bank account.
He deposited his paycheck every Friday.
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to give as security or in part payment.
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to deliver and leave (an item).
Please deposit your returned books with the librarian.
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to insert (a coin) in a coin-operated device.
Deposit a quarter and push the button.
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to put, place, or set down, especially carefully or exactly.
She deposited the baby in the crib.
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to lay or throw down by a natural process; precipitate.
The river deposited soil at its mouth.
verb (used without object)
-
deposits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
deposited,
past participle, past
-
depositing
present participle
noun
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deposits
plural
-
money placed in a bank account or an instance of placing money in a bank account.
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anything given as security or in part payment.
The boy returned the bottle and got his five-cent deposit back.
They made a deposit on the house and signed a ten-year mortgage.
-
anything laid away or entrusted to another for safekeeping.
A large deposit of jewels was stolen from the hotel safe.
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a place for safekeeping; depository.
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something precipitated, delivered and left, or thrown down, as by a natural process.
a deposit of soil.
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the natural sediment of wine in a bottle.
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a coating of metal deposited on something, usually by an electric current.
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a natural accumulation or occurrence, especially of oil or ore.
a mountain range with many rich deposits of gold.
verb
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to put or set down, esp carefully or in a proper place; place
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to entrust for safekeeping; consign
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to place (money) in a bank or similar institution in order to earn interest or for safekeeping
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to give (money) in part payment or as security
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to lay down naturally; cause to settle
the river deposits silt
noun
-
-
an instance of entrusting money or valuables to a bank or similar institution
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the money or valuables so entrusted
-
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money given in part payment or as security, as when goods are bought on hire-purchase See also down payment
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a consideration, esp money, given temporarily as security against loss of or damage to something borrowed or hired
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an accumulation of sediments, mineral ores, coal, etc
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any deposited material, such as a sediment or a precipitate that has settled out of solution
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a coating produced on a surface, esp a layer of metal formed by electrolysis
-
a depository or storehouse
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payable as the first instalment, as when buying on hire-purchase
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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depositsimple
-
depositssimple
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have depositedperfect
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has depositedperfect
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am depositingprogressive
-
are depositingprogressive
-
is depositingprogressive
-
have been depositingperfect progressive
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has been depositingperfect progressive
Past
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depositedsimple
-
had depositedperfect
-
was depositingprogressive
-
were depositingprogressive
-
had been depositingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deposit
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin dēpositus “laid down,” past participle of dēpōnere; see depone
Explanation
You are making a deposit when you put money into your bank account. In that sentence, deposit is a noun, but you could express the same action using deposit as a verb. You deposit money into your bank account. The verb deposit can be used to refer to anything that you put down or in place. If you're carrying your keys and groceries from the car, you may deposit those items on the counter. Just be careful you don't end up playing "where are my keys" in the morning, if the counter is not your usual place for depositing them. You can also use deposit when nature does the placing. You find a deposit of gold in the mountain rock or there is sediment deposited at the bottom of a river.
Vocabulary lists containing deposit
Gold Rush: Mining and Metals
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Africa - Introductory
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Africa - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“I spent an hour there arguing with myself, dropped a deposit and tried to figure out how to buy it,” said Sprinkle, a 68-year-old retired union pipe fitter who lives in Indiana.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2026
Binance is the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, where people can buy, sell and trade digital currencies, like Bitcoin, as well as deposit and withdraw them.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
But a bank deposit is only guaranteed up to a certain amount.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026
Kalshi is instituting a default monthly deposit limit of $2,500 for 18- to 20-year-olds in its prediction market.
From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026
Then there was the business of death, the complexity of how to deposit a badly burned corpse into the ground of a National Cemetery as quickly and with as much dignity as possible.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
Authorities have suspended its services while they organize the return of deposits.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
The move will require Chinese financial institutions to lock up an additional 2% of their foreign-currency deposits with the central bank, tightening dollar liquidity in domestic markets and helping cool the yuan’s appreciation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026
Earlier research found that disruptions in this pathway were associated with the formation of amyloid-beta deposits in the brains of rats.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026
"Or perhaps they are going off for a period of time after school, but they are coming back home again to save for deposits for maybe having their own house in the future," she said.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
The fact that uranium deposits occurred naturally around the world without disintegrating themselves suggested that extraordinary conditions had to be present.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Scientists and conservation groups have long warned lead shotgun pellets can contaminate habitats and harm wildlife after being deposited in the environment.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
On Saturday, it will be 45 days since an olive ridley sea turtle crawled out of the surf and deposited a clutch of eggs near the Surfside community in Seal Beach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
Some of the material had been buried long before it was eventually transported and deposited again near the ancient lake at 'Ubeidiya.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2026
Though the delay from RTO is often only a day, mail can be delayed longer if it’s deposited in a mailbox after the daily pickup time, or just before Sunday or a holiday.
From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026
Like I am a piece of dust deposited in a dustpan.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
Simply depositing minerals on a tooth is not enough to recreate the complex structure that makes natural enamel so effective.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026
Since the prehistoric era, humans have recognized the ritual power of wetlands, some by depositing votive offerings into bogs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
To pay for this labor, inmates allege that individuals outside of prison are depositing thousands of dollars into the commissary accounts of those serving the “Bad Boy for Life” rapper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Kozlowski's wife, Sandra Kozlowska, 38, also from Kirkby, was convicted of assisting an offender after she helped her husband to avoid suspicion by depositing money in bank accounts for him and lying to the police.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Weighing the half-pounds of flour, excluding the scoop, and depositing them dust-free into the thin paper sacks held a simple kind of adventure for me.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
