a sum of money demanded by a government for its support or for specific facilities or services, levied upon incomes, property, sales, etc.
a burdensome charge, obligation, duty, or demand.
verb (used with object)
(of a government)
to demand a tax from (a person, business, etc.).
to demand a tax in consideration of the possession or occurrence of (income, goods, sales, etc.), usually in proportion to the value of money involved.
to lay a burden on; make serious demands on: to tax one's resources.
to take to task; censure; reprove; accuse: to tax one with laziness.
Informal. to charge: What did he tax you for that?
Archaic. to estimate or determine the amount or value of.
verb (used without object)
to levy taxes.
Origin of tax
1250–1300; (v.) Middle Englishtaxen < Medieval Latintaxāre to tax, appraise, Latin: to appraise, handle, frequentative of tangere to touch; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.
Related formstax·er, nountax·ing·ly, adverbtax·less, adjectivetax·less·ly, adverbtax·less·ness, nounan·ti·tax, adjectivenon·tax, noun, adjectivenon·tax·er, nounpro·tax, adjectivere·tax, verb (used with object)self-taxed, adjectivesub·tax·er, nounun·der·taxed, adjectiveun·tax, verb (used with object)well-taxed, adjectiveCan be confusedtackstax
a compulsory financial contribution imposed by a government to raise revenue, levied on the income or property of persons or organizations, on the production costs or sales prices of goods and services, etc
a heavy demand on something; straina tax on our resources
verb(tr)
to levy a tax on (persons, companies, etc, or their incomes, etc)
to make heavy demands on; strainto tax one's intellect
to accuse, charge, or blamehe was taxed with the crime
to determine (the amount legally chargeable or allowable to a party to a legal action), as by examining the solicitor's bill of coststo tax costs
slangto steal
Derived Formstaxer, nountaxless, adjective
Word Origin for tax
C13: from Old French taxer, from Latin taxāre to appraise, from tangere to touch
c.1300, "impose a tax on," from Old French taxer "impose a tax" (13c.), from Latin taxare "evaluate, estimate, assess, handle," also "censure, charge," probably a frequentative form of tangere "to touch" (see tangent). Sense of "burden, put a strain on" first recorded 1670s; that of "censure, reprove" is from 1560s. Its use in Luke ii for Greek apographein "to enter on a list, enroll" is due to Tyndale. Related: Taxed; taxing.
n.
early 14c., "obligatory contribution levied by a sovereign or government," from Anglo-French tax, Old French taxe, and directly from Medieval Latin taxa, from Latin taxare (see tax (v.)). Related: taxes. Tax shelter is attested from 1961.
