expenses

/ɪkˈspɛnsɪz/
nounIntermediate incurred costs
💼Business
formal

Money spent on something; the total of costs incurred.

Travel expenses are reimbursed by the company.

The company pays back the money spent on travel.

He kept a detailed record of his expenses.

He tracked every amount of money he spent.

💡

Usually used in the plural when referring to overall spending.

Collocations

reduce expenseslower the amount of money spentcover expensespay for the costs incurredoperating expensesregular costs needed to run a business

Related Phrases

operating expensesphrase
regular costs needed to run a business
capital expensesphrase
large, long‑term investments in assets

💡Pro Tip

Tracking tip

Record your expenses daily in a spreadsheet or app to see where your money goes.

📖Word Origin

From Latin expensa, past participle of expendere ‘to pay out, spend’, from ex‑ ‘out’ + pendere ‘to weigh, pay’.

📝Usage Notes

Use the plural form ‘expenses’ for overall spending; the singular ‘expense’ can refer to a specific cost or a tax‑deductible item.

English Dictionary