revenue

noun

rev·​e·​nue ˈre-və-ˌnü 

-ˌnyü

often attributive

1

: the total income produced by a given source

a property expected to yield a large annual revenue

2

: the gross income returned by an investment

3

: the yield of sources of income (such as taxes) that a political unit (such as a nation or state) collects and receives into the treasury for public use

4

: a government department concerned with the collection of the national revenue

Synonyms

• earnings
• gain(s)
• income
• incoming(s)
• proceeds
• profit
• return
• yield

Examples of revenue in a Sentence

The factory lost revenue because of the strike by the workers.

The firm is looking for another source of revenue.

Government officials have reported a decrease in revenue.

state and federal tax revenues

Recent Examples on the Web

Earnings per share fell 25%, and total revenue was down 3%. —Nathan Bomey, Axios, 22 Oct. 2024

Danaher’s revenue for the three months ended Sept. 27 advanced 3% year over year on a reported basis, to $5.8 billion, outpacing the LSEG consensus estimate of $5.59 billion. —Zev Fima, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2024

TelevisaUnivision said overall revenue rose 2% to $1.3 billion, despite headwinds in the company’s Mexico operations. —Brian Steinberg, Variety, 22 Oct. 2024

In the third quarter, revenues were down 7.8 percent to 397.3 million euros. —Luisa Zargani, WWD, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, return, revenue, from Anglo-French, from revenir to return, from Latin revenire, from re- + venire to come — more at come

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing revenue

• revenue bond
• revenue cutter
• revenue stamp
• revenue tariff

Kids Definition

revenue

noun

rev·​e·​nue ˈrev-ə-ˌn(y)ü 

1

: the income produced by a given source

2

: the income that a government collects for public use

Legal Definition

revenue

noun

rev·​e·​nue ˈre-və-ˌnü, -ˌnyü 

often attributive

1

: the total income produced by a given source

a property expected to yield a large annual revenue

2

: the gross income returned by an investment

3

: the yield of sources of income (as taxes) that a political unit (as a nation or state) collects and receives into the treasury for public use

4

: a government department concerned with the collection of national revenue