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

Etymology

Origin of investment

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

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

However, Fitch in its downgrade of Delaware Life said the plan may prove “insufficient to fully address governance, reporting, and investment oversight issues.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

The investment firm shifted away from some of the market’s biggest semiconductor winners in the second quarter.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

But in addition to big stakes in companies like OpenAI, Stripe and SpaceX, Kushner has said that his core investment thesis also prizes “iconic franchises” that will be immune from technological disruption.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

You could also be subject to the 3.8% net investment income tax on investment earnings from your brokerage account.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

Nomadism, the hunter-gatherer lifestyle, and minimal investment in shelter and possessions were sensible adaptations to Australia’s ENSO-driven resource unpredictability.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Poland is seeing an artificial intelligence boom driven by U.S. tech investments, new talent, and supportive government policies.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

Thrive Capital, Joshua Kushner’s venture-capital firm, is expanding beyond tech investments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

These worrying landmarks reinforce a market perception that fixed-income investments are losing bets, a sentiment Hartnett summarizes as “Anything But Bonds.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

They naturally prefer institutions that can make repeated large investments and hold for decades.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

A financial customer might be reasonably familiar with the world of investments and still have to puzzle over what a company brochure means by “capital changes and rights.”

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

Related Words

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