deficit spending

American  

noun

1. the practice of spending funds in excess of income, especially by a government.

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Etymology

Origin of deficit spending

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deficit spending

But Athens and Rome have taken painful steps to cut deficit spending, while France's deficit remains above five percent of GDP, far above the eurozone average of 2.9 percent.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

France’s 3.5 trillion-euro government bond market is the largest in Europe thanks to years of high deficit spending.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

“These include massive deficit spending, not only in the U.S., and massive spending on defense in Europe and in Japan,” he said during an interview with MarketWatch.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

Double-digit raises have been promised to union workers by a school system that for months has proclaimed that it is in dire financial straits, trapped in deficit spending and facing potential insolvency in four years.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2026

Failure to reach agreement with multilateral lenders in late 1995 led to rising deficit spending and subsequently increasing inflation and a drop in the value of the Haitian currency in the final months of 1995.

From The 1996 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency

Related Words

• budget deficit