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capital gain
noun
: the increase in value of an asset (such as stock or real estate) between the time it is bought and the time it is sold
Examples of capital gain in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The income generated by assets held in such accounts is subject to ordinary income tax, but gains on investments in a taxable investment account held more than one year are subject to a favorable long-term capital gains rate, currently 15% for most people.
—Michael J. Francis, Journal Sentinel, 16 May 2024
Having acknowledged the much larger deficit, Newsom proposes two changes in the budgetary process to cope with the volatility factor: including future budgets in the annual calculations and not spending erratic revenue sources, such as capital gains, until they are realized.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 14 May 2024
In 2021, capital gains accounted for 25% of total income tax liability.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2024
In July 2014, Mr. Simons and his firm drew bipartisan condemnation from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations for using financial derivatives to disguise day-to-day trading as long-term capital gains.
—Jonathan Kandell, New York Times, 10 May 2024
The Biden administration is now looking to address that in the election year with a proposal for higher capital gains taxes, including on unrealized gains.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 6 May 2024
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the government will tax Canadian companies on two-thirds of their capital gains, up from half currently.
—Erik Hertzberg, Fortune, 17 Apr. 2024
An increase over your purchase price results in an unrealized capital gain (a profit that exists on paper but hasn’t been cashed in yet), while a decrease indicates an unrealized loss.
—Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
Revenues are prone to volatility, hinging on capital gains from investments, bonuses to executives and windfalls from new stock offerings, and notoriously difficult for the state to predict.
—Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'capital gain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1921, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near capital gain
Cite this Entry
“Capital gain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capital%20gain. Accessed 19 May. 2024.
Legal Definition
capital gain
see gain
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