tax

 
Pronunciation: /taks/

noun

  • 1a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers' income and business profits, or added to the cost of some goods, services, and transactions: higher taxes will dampen consumer spending a tax on fuel [mass noun]: they will have to pay tax on interest earned by savings [as modifier]: a tax bill [as modifier]: tax cuts
  • 2 [in singular] a strain or heavy demand: a heavy tax on the reader’s attention

verb

[with object]
  • 1impose a tax on (someone or something): the income will be taxed at the top rate
  • pay tax on (something, especially a vehicle): the Land Rover slowly disintegrates and no one has bothered to tax it
  • 2make heavy demands on (someone’s powers or resources): she knew that the ordeal to come must tax all her strength
  • 3confront (someone) with a fault or wrongdoing: why are you taxing me with these preposterous allegations?
  • 4 Law examine and assess (the costs of a case): an officer taxing a bill of costs

Derivatives

taxable

adjective

taxer

noun

Origin:

Middle English (also in the sense 'estimate or determine the amount of a penalty or damages', surviving in tax (sense 4 of the verb)): from Old French taxer, from Latin taxare 'to censure, charge, compute', perhaps from Greek tassein 'fix'