expense

[ ik-spens ]

/ ɪkˈspɛns /

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See synonyms for: expense / expenses on Thesaurus.com

noun

cost or charge: the expense of a good meal.

a cause or occasion of spending: A car can be a great expense.

the act of expending; expenditure.

expenses,

charges incurred during a business assignment or trip.
money paid as reimbursement for such charges: to receive a salary and expenses.

verb (used with object), ex·pensed, ex·pens·ing.

to charge or write off as an expense.

verb (used without object), ex·pensed, ex·pens·ing.

to be expensed.

OTHER WORDS FOR expense

1 outlay, expenditure.

See synonyms for expense on Thesaurus.com

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Idioms about expense

at the expense of, at the sacrifice of; to the detriment of: quantity at the expense of quality.

Origin of expense

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin expēnsa, noun use of feminine of expēnsus, past participle of expendere “to weigh out, pay”; see expend

synonym study for expense

1. See price.

OTHER WORDS FROM expense

ex·pense·less, adjectivepre·ex·pense, noun

Words nearby expense

expeller, expellers, expend, expendable, expenditure, expense, expense account, expensive, experience, experienced, Experience is the best teacher

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use expense in a sentence

The banks cited a need to reduce expenses to offset the cost of credit souring during the pandemic as well as spending to comply with stricter regulation and invest in digital technology.
The incredibly shrinking banking sector is heading for near-record job losses this year|Bernhard Warner|September 16, 2020|Fortune
If Oracle’s interest in TikTok is primarily about cloud computing, the deal could come at the expense of Google, which is Oracle’s longtime nemesis and which currently provides cloud services to TikTok.
Twitter users sound off about Oracle’s TikTok deal|Jeff|September 14, 2020|Fortune
It will make markets and the capitalist system function better by rewarding positive contributions to well-being and prosperity, not wealth transfers at the expense of others.
50 years later, Milton Friedman’s shareholder doctrine is dead|jakemeth|September 13, 2020|Fortune
Still, Walter Hyde hasn’t been able to raise his staff’s pay to $10 an hour this year like he planned, with all the extra expenses of masks and gloves.
The Big Corporate Rescue and the America That’s Too Small to Save|by Lydia DePillis, Justin Elliott and Paul Kiel|September 12, 2020|ProPublica

Citron Reseach thanked Hinddenburg in a tweet, offering to pay for half of any legal expenses incurred.
Nikola shares slump after blanket denial of short-seller report|radmarya|September 11, 2020|Fortune
Stripped of these frills, the only real expense of a prison wedding is the officiant.
Saying Yes to the Dress—Behind Bars|Caitlin Dickson|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mattson says the government bogarts this stuff, gathered at taxpayer expense, and maintains “a monopoly on the data.”
What It Takes to Kill a Grizzly Bear|Doug Peacock|November 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They even posted mundane administrative materials, including expense accounts and personnel memos.
How the NSA Became a Killing Machine|Shane Harris|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As might be expected, this comes at the expense of narrative.
Bayonetta Is Nintendo’s Graphic, Ass-Kicking Barbie|Alec Kubas-Meyer|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the price of artistic freedom comes at the expense of professional protection.
Reconsidering Renée Zellweger: Forever a Hollywood-Pretty Character Actress|Teo Bugbee|October 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He asked what time was usually spent in determining between right and wrong, and what degree of expense?
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift
Gourges fitted out three vessels and 150 soldiers at his own expense to revenge their death, and repair the honor of his nation.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
I couldn't help laughing, and he made a great many jokes at the expense of the waiters and everybody else.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
To meet this heavy expense the ministers had to devise all sorts of expedients to raise money.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
Poor Hephzibah obeyed; she little suspected the heartless trick played at her expense.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills

British Dictionary definitions for expense

expense

/ (ɪkˈspɛns) /

noun

a particular payment of money; expenditure

money needed for individual purchases; cost; charge

(plural) incidental money spent in the performance of a job, commission, etc, usually reimbursed by an employer or allowable against tax

something requiring money for its purchase or upkeepthe car was more of an expense than he had expected

at the expense of to the detriment ofhe succeeded at the expense of his health

verb

(tr) US and Canadian to treat as an expense for book-keeping or tax purposes

Word Origin for expense

C14: from Late Latin expēnsa, from Latin expēnsus weighed out; see expend

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with expense

expense

see at the expense of; go to the trouble (expense); money (expense) is no object.

expense

OTHER WORDS FOR expense

Idioms about expense

Origin of expense

synonym study for expense

OTHER WORDS FROM expense

Words nearby expense

Words related to expense

How to use expense in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for expense

Word Origin for expense

Other Idioms and Phrases with expense