write-down
noun
a reduction of the entered value of an asset account.
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write-down
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write down
write downverb(tr) to set down in writing
write-down
American
[rahyt-doun]
/ ˈraɪtˌdaʊn /
noun
Accounting.
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a reduction of the entered value of an asset account.
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the procedure of reducing the recorded value of an asset, either by estimate or as a plan.
write down
British
verb
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(tr) to set down in writing
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(tr) to harm or belittle by writing about (a person) in derogatory terms
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(intr; foll by to or for) to write in a simplified way (to a supposedly less cultured readership)
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(tr) accounting to decrease the book value of (an asset)
noun
write down
Idioms
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Set down in writing, record, as in Please write down your new address and phone number . [Late 1500s]
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Reduce in rank, value, or price, as in They've written down their assets . [Late 1800s]
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Write in a simple or condescending style, as in These science texts are written down for high-school students . [Second half of 1800s]
Etymology
Origin of write-down
First recorded in 1930–35; noun use of verb phrase write down
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.
KKR’s biggest private-credit fund took what amounts to a 10% write-down of its net asset value.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
Federal prosecutors are probing a BlackRock private-credit fund that surprised investors with a sharp write-down of its loan portfolio earlier this year, according to people familiar with the matter.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
In a 2019 trial, HPE had accused Lynch of inflating Autonomy's revenues which it said forced it to announce an $8.8bn write-down of the company's worth.
From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026
It went slower on all-electric cars and hasn’t taken a write-down yet.
From Barron's • Mar. 12, 2026
All through 2008, she followed the bankers’ and brokers’ claims that they had put their problems behind them with this write-down or that capital raise with her own claim: You’re wrong.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
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.
