income

American  

[in-kuhm] / ˈɪn kʌm /

noun

• incomes
  plural

1. revenue received for goods or services, or from other sources, as rents or investments.

   For years, her only source of income was the small number of stocks her father left her.

2. the money, or amount of money, received from one’s employment.

   a household with three incomes;

   a healthcare worker with an income that hasn’t increased in five years.

   Synonyms:

   earnings, wages, salary, return, gains, annuity, interest

   Antonyms:

   expenditure, outgo

3. something that comes in as an addition or increase, especially by chance.

4. Archaic. a coming in.

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income British  

/ ˈɪnkəm, ˈɪnkʌm /

noun

1. the amount of monetary or other returns, either earned or unearned, accruing over a given period of time

2. receipts; revenue

3. rare an inflow or influx

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income Cultural  

1. The amount of money received during a period of time in exchange for labor or services, from the sale of goods or property, or as a profit from financial investments.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• incomeless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• incomes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of income

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English: literally, “that which has come in,” noun use of incomen (past participle of incomen “to come in”), Old English incuman; see in, come

Explanation

What could be simpler than to remember that income basically refers to money that "comes in," or is earned. Your income is the money you make in a given time period, for example weekly, monthly, or annually. Your income might come from many sources — salary, investments, interest or annuities. Today income is used as a noun, but the Old English word incuman was first a verb that meant "to come in," and referred to the money earned through one's labor or business dealings. The first income tax was attempted in Britain in 1404, but was so unpopular it was ended. In the United States, the Federal Income Tax became law in 1913, and, unfortunately, is still in effect.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

income incomes

The challenge of combining sources of personal data, including income and health, and the proposal to find more taxpayer money to fund such a scheme are likely to raise questions.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

BadgerCare Plus eligibility is based on current income, so this sounds like a good possibility for her.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 22, 2026

The U.K.’s graduate earnings premium—the extra income graduates earn compared with nongraduates—is lower than in the U.S. and some other European countries, according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

“This is a Band-Aid,” said Lawrence Gillum, chief fixed income strategist at LPL Financial.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

Her income as a piano teacher couldn’t have been much; she probably struggled financially.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Private rents typically soak up a third of prospective buyers' incomes.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

He told AFP debt delinquency was "not a consequence of individual decisions" but the result of "a macroeconomic context that has worsened incomes, employment and economic activity."

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

The risk for investors is that the company has to wait a long time for middle-class incomes to catch up.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

Settlement critics noted that the pact meant that ranch employees, many of them Latinos with moderate incomes, lost their homes along with the ranch owners.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

"His son will succeed to the Eyrie and all its incomes," Robert said brusquely.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

Related Words

• cash
• compensation
• earnings
• interest
• livelihood
• pay
• proceeds
• profit
• revenue
• royalty
• salary
• wage