deposit

American  

[dih-poz-it] / dɪˈpɒz ɪt /

verb (used with object)

• deposits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• deposited,
  past participle,  past
• depositing
  present participle

1. 

   to place for safekeeping or in trust, especially in a bank account.

   He deposited his paycheck every Friday.

   Synonyms:

   store, save, bank

2. to give as security or in part payment.

3. to deliver and leave (an item).

   Please deposit your returned books with the librarian.

4. to insert (a coin) in a coin-operated device.

   Deposit a quarter and push the button.

5. to put, place, or set down, especially carefully or exactly.

   She deposited the baby in the crib.

6. to lay or throw down by a natural process; precipitate.

   The river deposited soil at its mouth.

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verb (used without object)

• deposits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• deposited,
  past participle,  past
• depositing
  present participle

1. to be placed, inserted, precipitated, left for safekeeping, given as security or in partial payment, etc.

noun

• deposits
  plural

1. money placed in a bank account or an instance of placing money in a bank account.

2. anything given as security or in part payment.

   The boy returned the bottle and got his five-cent deposit back.

   They made a deposit on the house and signed a ten-year mortgage.

3. anything laid away or entrusted to another for safekeeping.

   A large deposit of jewels was stolen from the hotel safe.

4. a place for safekeeping; depository.

5. something precipitated, delivered and left, or thrown down, as by a natural process.

   a deposit of soil.

6. the natural sediment of wine in a bottle.

7. a coating of metal deposited on something, usually by an electric current.

8. a natural accumulation or occurrence, especially of oil or ore.

   a mountain range with many rich deposits of gold.

   Synonyms:

   pocket, vein, lode

deposit British  

/ dɪˈpɒzɪt /

verb

1. to put or set down, esp carefully or in a proper place; place

2. to entrust for safekeeping; consign

3. to place (money) in a bank or similar institution in order to earn interest or for safekeeping

4. to give (money) in part payment or as security

5. to lay down naturally; cause to settle

   the river deposits silt

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noun

1. 1. an instance of entrusting money or valuables to a bank or similar institution

   2. the money or valuables so entrusted

2. money given in part payment or as security, as when goods are bought on hire-purchase See also down payment

3. a consideration, esp money, given temporarily as security against loss of or damage to something borrowed or hired

4. an accumulation of sediments, mineral ores, coal, etc

5. any deposited material, such as a sediment or a precipitate that has settled out of solution

6. a coating produced on a surface, esp a layer of metal formed by electrolysis

7. a depository or storehouse

8. payable as the first instalment, as when buying on hire-purchase

deposit Scientific  

/ dĭ-pŏz′ĭt /

1. An accumulation or layer of solid material, either consolidated or unconsolidated, left or laid down by a natural process. Deposits include sediments left by water, wind, ice, gravity, volcanic activity, or other agents. A layer of coal formed over many years through the decomposition of plant material is also a deposit.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• predeposit
  noun
• subdeposit
  noun
• superdeposit
  noun
• redeposit
  verb
• undeposited
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• deposits
  plural

Participles

• depositing
  present
• deposited
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• deposit
  simple
• deposits
  simple
• have deposited
  perfect
• has deposited
  perfect
• am depositing
  progressive
• are depositing
  progressive
• is depositing
  progressive
• have been depositing
  perfect progressive
• has been depositing
  perfect progressive

Past

• deposited
  simple
• had deposited
  perfect
• was depositing
  progressive
• were depositing
  progressive
• had been depositing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will deposit
  simple
• will have deposited
  perfect
• will be depositing
  progressive
• will have been depositing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of deposit

First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin dēpositus “laid down,” past participle of dēpōnere; see depone

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Explanation

You are making a deposit when you put money into your bank account. In that sentence, deposit is a noun, but you could express the same action using deposit as a verb. You deposit money into your bank account. The verb deposit can be used to refer to anything that you put down or in place. If you're carrying your keys and groceries from the car, you may deposit those items on the counter. Just be careful you don't end up playing "where are my keys" in the morning, if the counter is not your usual place for depositing them. You can also use deposit when nature does the placing. You find a deposit of gold in the mountain rock or there is sediment deposited at the bottom of a river.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deposit deposits deposited depositing

The ECB held its key deposit rate at 2.5%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

The government has announced a scheme to help first-time buyers in England who have a deposit of 2.5%, but Robert says: "Saving for a house is impossible at the moment."

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

Kalshi is instituting a default monthly deposit limit of $2,500 for 18- to 20-year-olds in its prediction market.

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

But a bank deposit is only guaranteed up to a certain amount.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026

Unfortunately in the 1970s no tests existed for determining how long such a deposit might have taken to accumulate.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

The scheme is expected to offer 2.5% deposits alongside government-backed equity loans for eligible first-time buyers purchasing new-build homes.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

Comparing these records with known magnetic reversals showed that the deposits formed during the Matuyama Chron, a period that began more than two million years ago.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2026

Chinese companies have also partnered with Rio Tinto to extract iron ore from the Simandou project in Guinea, previously seen as one of the world’s biggest untapped iron-ore deposits.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

In the longer term, they say, the country needs to develop new deposits.

From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026

I saw the deposits for the food and music, and one or two other expenses that probably had to do with the dance.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

Though the delay from RTO is often only a day, mail can be delayed longer if it’s deposited in a mailbox after the daily pickup time, or just before Sunday or a holiday.

From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026

But Purdue University, which has a leading role in the study, said the so-called Taraia Object "was likely a collection of large trees deposited along the peninsula's sandspit".

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

Red-deer-skull headdresses deposited at Star Carr suggest a spiritual significance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

But they were present only in samples deposited in oxygenated settings.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 27, 2026

Or at a molecular level: Proteins in the early embryo are deposited preferentially at one end by the mother.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

It's all because she can't stand the sound of the delivery drones that fly overhead, depositing her neighbours' online orders.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

Since the prehistoric era, humans have recognized the ritual power of wetlands, some by depositing votive offerings into bogs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Researchers around the world have explored several possible solutions, including different dielectric materials, molecular seed layers, and alternative methods for depositing oxides.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

One woman wrote to me a few years ago to say her husband had opened a new bank account and was depositing his paychecks there.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026

It had cleaned up nicely, despite me depositing the entire contents of my sinuses on it, not to mention a gallon of stress hormones.

From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram

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Related Words

• accumulate
• amass
• collect
• deliver
• hoard
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• invest
• save
• stash
• transfer

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