rate of return

British

noun

finance the ratio of the annual income from an investment to the original investment, often expressed as a percentage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

It said the $10 billion fund was oversubscribed, and that its predecessors have generated a 13% net internal rate of return since 2007.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

The company said it was unlikely to be able to make its required rate of return on investment in new land acquisitions due to rising tax and regulatory burdens on residential developments.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

The average rate of return on these accounts is about 6.8%.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 20, 2026

It has a 30% rate of return, meaning 30% of lost items are recovered and reunited with their owners, he said.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2026

Simultaneously, they seek to minimize their risk of starving: moderate but reliable returns are preferable to a fluctuating lifestyle with a high time-averaged rate of return but a substantial likelihood of starving to death.

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

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023