progressive tax

Cultural  

1. A tax that takes a higher proportion of large incomes than of small ones. (Compare regressive tax.)

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Example Sentences

California has a progressive tax system under which the top 1% of taxpayers paid 36.6% of the state’s income taxes in 2023, the most recent year of data, according to the California Franchise Tax Board.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

The U.S. has a progressive tax system, meaning most people are taxed in multiple tax brackets, at rates that increase as their taxable pay rises past thresholds.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 9, 2025

Barón, 50, a lawyer and the longtime former leader of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, has made the push for more progressive tax revenue a cornerstone of his campaign.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 1, 2023

She proposed more progressive tax policy, fairer wages and more corporate governance scrutiny to ensure that enough money is going into the collective pot to fund more people getting a social security check.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2023

A progressive tax was laid upon incomes beginning with four per cent on incomes in the lower ranges and rising to sixty-three per cent of that part of any income above $2,000,000.

From History of the United States by Beard, Charles A. (Charles Austin)