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

Airbnb spokeswoman Nicolette Velasquez said the candidates it backs, including Gaspar, are in favor of expanding short-term rental policies to allow homeowners to supplement their income by renting out their homes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

My son does not work, is a full-time student and does not have any income.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

She tells her viewers to put their money into artificial-intelligence and tech companies and start making passive income, like she’s done by selling the lessons she has created online.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

The statistical models accounted for age, sex, income, and education.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

But Tycho was used to being given considerable indulgence and saw any reduction in his income as an insult, as well as a threat to his work.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

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

But as inequality has supercharged the gap between workers with the highest and lowest incomes, wages above the cap have grown much faster than those under the cap, Romig said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

As African economies and incomes grow in the coming decades, emigration to the U.S. will increase as more people can afford to move.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Tourism is the largest contributor to Cornwall's economy, but it comes at a price for local families bringing up children on the lowest incomes.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

In the late 1990s, Medicare slashed reimbursement levels to around $450 per procedure, and the incomes of the surgically minded ophthalmologists fell.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

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