recoup
Americanverb (used with object)
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to get back the equivalent of.
to recoup one's losses by a lucky investment.
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to regain or recover.
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to reimburse or indemnify; pay back.
to recoup a person for expenses.
- Synonyms:
- remunerate, recompense
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Law. to withhold (a portion of something due), having some rightful claim to do so.
verb (used without object)
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to get back an equivalent, as of something lost.
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Law. (of a defendant in a lawsuit) to plead that one is owed, in the same matter, an amount by the plaintiff which applies against the payment of one’s own debt to the plaintiff.
noun
verb
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to regain or make good (a financial or other loss)
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(tr) to reimburse or compensate (someone), as for a loss
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law to keep back (something due), having rightful claim to do so; withhold; deduct
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of recoup
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French recouper “to cut back, cut again,” equivalent to re- re- ( def. ) + couper “to cut”; see coup 1 ( def. )
Explanation
To recoup is a kind of recovery: If you lost some money but then made that amount back, you recouped your loss. When you recuperate, you get better after being sick. And when you recoup something, you get better or bounce back after a loss. Businesses that lose money try to recoup it by throwing a sale or cutting their budget. If a runner falls behind in a race but then speeds up to the front of the pack, he's recouped his lead. In some cases this word also means "to reimburse."
Vocabulary lists containing recoup
The Joy Luck Club
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The Odyssey
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The Distance Between Us
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Utilities must borrow money to build costly infrastructure, but then have to wait for regulators to allow them to recoup that investment.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
Companies only make that kind of investment if they can recoup those costs when a treatment proves successful and continue to invest in breakthrough drugs.
From Salon • May 15, 2026
So far, airlines have said the higher fares haven’t deterred bookings and they are hoping to recoup more of the fuel-cost increases as the year goes on.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
Two years later, Steyer invested about $29.5 million in Proposition 39, a winning measure to recoup money from corporate tax breaks to help pay for clean energy projects.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
No, I had to cancel the dance, recoup what I could, and eat the rest.
From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
