reimburse
Americanverb (used with object)
-
reimburses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reimbursed,
past participle, past
-
reimbursing
present participle
-
to make repayment to for expense or loss incurred.
The insurance company reimbursed him for his losses in the fire.
- Synonyms:
- redress, recoup, indemnify, remunerate, recompense
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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reimbursementnoun
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reimbursernoun
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nonreimbursedadjective
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reimbursableadjective
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unreimbursableadjective
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unreimbursedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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reimbursesimple
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reimbursessimple
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have reimbursedperfect
-
has reimbursedperfect
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am reimbursingprogressive
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are reimbursingprogressive
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is reimbursingprogressive
-
have been reimbursingperfect progressive
-
has been reimbursingperfect progressive
Past
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reimbursedsimple
-
had reimbursedperfect
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was reimbursingprogressive
-
were reimbursingprogressive
-
had been reimbursingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reimburse
First recorded in 1605–15; re- + obsolete imburse “to put into a purse, pay,” from Medieval Latin imbursāre, equivalent to Latin im- im- 1 + Medieval Latin -bursāre, derivative of bursa “bag” ( see purse)
Explanation
If you buy a basketball for your school team with your own money, and you ask your coach to reimburse you, you are asking him to pay you back. To reimburse is to compensate for an expense or loss. The person who collects money at a college is the bursar, a purse is where you store money, and reimburse means to pay money back. All three of these words share the Latin root bursa 'moneybag.' If you want to be paid back for overpaid tuition, ask the bursar, Mr. Moneybags, to reimburse you from the schools purse.
Vocabulary lists containing reimburse
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Richard Nixon's "Checkers" Speech (1952)
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Wonder
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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.
See Examples For:
It said it tightened its seller vetting process, introduced a policy to reimburse buyers who win high-value items that sellers fail to deliver and mandated that all repack boxes be manufacturer-sealed and verified before sale.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
According to the written judgement of the verdict published in March, the man agreed to reimburse Rose for her travel and accommodation.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
"Or a big hailstorm in September and then the insurance will reimburse us," he joked.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
As far as the use of the district car and driver, Carvalho is willing to reimburse the district for these costs if asked to do so, the spokesperson said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 28, 2026
The college would reimburse me for my travel expenses if their scholarship offer was accepted.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
DeVeydt styled the efforts as an attempt to address a $6 billion headwind from prior changes to how the Medicare program reimburses insurers.
From Barron's ● Apr. 21, 2026
The bill would also rename a state program that reimburses ranchers who lose livestock to wolves, calling it the Wolf-Livestock Coexistence and Compensation Program.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2026
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reimburses the Medicare Advantage plan for the administration of Medicare benefits.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2025
This reimburses you for nonrefundable travel expenses like prepaid vacation packages or vacation rentals, cruises, tours, tickets and transportation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2025
Reimburse′ment, act of reimbursing; Reimburs′er, one who reimburses.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various
If you later receive a settlement or court judgment from the teenage driver’s insurance company, Medicare would typically be reimbursed for any conditional payments it made in the immediate aftermath of the automobile accident.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026
Wildberries has also reimbursed the losses of some small businesses, although many say they are still out of pocket.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
The grants run on an annual basis, and once a contract is in place, organizations can begin submitting invoices to be reimbursed for services such as rental assistance and emergency shelter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Preston Bus says it cannot confirm whether it will join a new government scheme capping single fares at £2 from January because it has not been told how operators will be reimbursed.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
He offered to split any profits we made after he was reimbursed for the cost of the drinks.
From "I Will Always Write Back" by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda
A $21-billion state wildfire fund that Newsom and lawmakers created in 2019 to protect the state’s three big utilities from bankruptcy after a fire is reimbursing Edison for its payments to victims.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
We also should consider treating food like medicine, with insurers and government payers reimbursing or heavily discounting healthy food and dietary programs that clearly lead to disease regression.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
By the time he returned to Congress in early 2024, the House was reimbursing members for lodging expenses in Washington.
From Salon ● May 29, 2026
Another thing that’s likely to be messy and lengthy is any process of reimbursing money that companies paid to the U.S. government under the now invalid tariffs.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 20, 2026
I think perhaps she saw the wide twisted mouth and embarrassed eyes of Martin Hopps on her and felt that in some way she was reimbursing him for his stolen life.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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.
