investment

American  

[in-vest-muhnt] / ɪnˈvɛst mənt /

noun

• investments
  plural

1. the investing of money or capital in order to gain profitable returns, as interest, income, or appreciation in value.

2. a particular instance or mode of investing.

3. a thing invested in, as a business, a quantity of shares of stock, etc.

4. something that is invested; sum invested.

5. the act or fact of investing or state of being invested, as with a garment.

6. a devoting, using, or giving of time, talent, emotional energy, etc., as for a purpose or to achieve something.

   His investment in the project included more time than he cared to remember.

7. Biology. any covering, coating, outer layer, or integument, as of an animal or vegetable.

8. the act of investing with a quality, attribute, etc.

9. investiture with an office, dignity, or right.

10. a siege or blockade; the surrounding of a place with military forces or works, as in besieging.

11. Also called investment compound. Metallurgy. a refractory material applied in a plastic state to a pattern to make a mold.

12. Archaic. a garment or vestment.

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investment British  

/ ɪnˈvɛstmənt /

noun

1. 1. the act of investing money

   2. the amount invested

   3. an enterprise, asset, etc, in which money is or can be invested

2. 1. the act of investing effort, resources, etc

   2. the amount invested

3. economics the amount by which the stock of capital (plant, machinery, materials, etc) in an enterprise or economy changes

4. biology the outer layer or covering of an organ, part, or organism

5. a less common word for investiture

6. the act of investing or state of being invested, as with an official robe, a specific quality, etc

7. rare the act of besieging with military forces, works, etc

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investment Cultural  

1. The purchase of property with the expectation that its value will increase over time.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonreinvestment
  noun
• overinvestment
  noun
• preinvestment
  noun
• reinvestment
  noun
• proinvestment
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• investments
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of investment

First recorded in 1590–1600 investment for def. 12; 1605–15 investment for def. 1; invest + -ment

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Explanation

You are making an investment when you put money into a business with the hopes that the business will grow and bring you a profit. Many consider a college education to be one of the best investments you can make. Besides money, you can put time, effort or emotional support into something and also call it an investment. Volunteering in an organization requires an investment of time and energy. You may hear someone say, "We must make an investment in the future of our children," when he or she is pleading for fiscal responsibility, education, environmental protection or some other cause that will affect the success of future generations.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

investment investments

He said there had been a "woeful lack of investment" in ecology.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

Pointing to reported layoffs involving a few hundred workers in September, the analysts said the company appears to be trying to fund that investment growth.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

These include "barriers that undermine American trade and investment and practices that pose a threat to US national security and foreign policy interests", a US statement said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

The company is reducing costs, helped by investment in technology, it added.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Craig was profoundly happy now, having finally made a swerve, leaving his career in investment banking and pivoting back to his first love—basketball.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

“Their decisions to delay or reduce investments in critical projects are particularly troubling given the billions of dollars in profits reported by their parent companies in recent years,” Perez wrote.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

Oracle said it would use the proceeds from the sales for general corporate purposes, which it said could include capital expenditures, debt repayment, dividends and future investments or acquisitions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

You are both in your 80s and drawing Social Security, pensions and, presumably, income from your investments, so the traditional window for Roth conversions has mostly closed.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

Recent investments and ill-timed sales have disappointed even as Berkshire’s longstanding holdings have delivered gains.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

I took dinner usually at the Yale Club--for some reason it was the gloomiest event of my day--and then I went upstairs to the library and studied investments and securities for a conscientious hour.

From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Related Words

• asset
• contribution
• expenditure
• expense
• finance
• financing
• grant
• loan
• money
• property
• purchase
• stake
• transaction
• venture

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