indiction

American  

[in-dik-shuhn] / ɪnˈdɪk ʃən /

noun

1. a proclamation made every 15 years in the later Roman Empire, fixing the valuation of property to be used as a basis for taxation.

2. a tax based on such valuation.

3. Also called cycle of indiction.  the recurring fiscal period of 15 years in the Roman Empire, long used for dating ordinary events.

4. a specified year in this period.

5. the number indicating it.

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indiction British  

/ ɪnˈdɪkʃən /

noun

1. a recurring fiscal period of 15 years, often used as a unit for dating events

2. a particular year in this period or the number assigned it

3. 1. a valuation of property made every 15 years as a basis for taxation

   2. the tax based on this valuation

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Other Word Forms

• indictional adjective

Etymology

Origin of indiction

1350–1400; Middle English indiccio ( u ) n < Latin indictiōn- (stem of indictiō ) announcement, equivalent to indict ( us ) past participle of indīcere to announce, proclaim + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

“Which perhaps gives an indiction about how eventful his life would become,” White concludes.

From The Guardian • Feb. 4, 2017

If star power is any indiction of Montreal’s bid to bring a team back to Quebec, then momentum seems to be building.

From The Guardian • Aug. 22, 2014

Indeed, if popularity was an indiction, this had become suddenly true.

From A Sappho of Green Springs by Harte, Bret

Cycle of Indiction.—Besides the solar and lunar cycles, there is a third of 15 years, called the cycle of indiction, frequently employed in the computations of chronologists.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 4 "Bulgaria" to "Calgary" by Various

The remainder of the taxes, according to the proportion observed in the annual indiction, was levied in a manner still more direct and still more oppressive.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 59, No. 368, June 1846 by Various