depreciation

noun

di-ˌprē-shē-ˈā-shən 

1

: the act of making a person or thing seem less valuable : the act of depreciating

depreciation of the role of art in school

2

: a decrease in the value of something (as due to deterioration or obsolescence)

specifically : a decrease in the value of property (such as machinery) for the purpose of taxation that is carried as a yearly charge amortizing the original cost over the useful life of the property

Examples of depreciation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But if the next decade requires materially higher infrastructure spending, more depreciation, heavier compute needs, and lower incremental returns, the old valuation framework may not survive untouched. —Jim Osman, Forbes.com, 21 May 2026

Those cars are now coming off lease, and EVs also have some of the steepest depreciation curves, which means low prices for used buyers. —Robert Ferris, CNBC, 20 May 2026

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization will be in a range of $160 million to $180 million, the midpoint of which was in line with the average estimate. —Bloomberg, Mercury News, 8 May 2026

All of this is occurring alongside existing vulnerabilities including currency depreciation, said Samy Guessabi, country director for Action Against Hunger in Sudan. —ABC News, 7 May 2026

In North America, sales fell 7.7 percent to 109.7 million euros, reflecting the depreciation of the average dollar-euro exchange rate by about 11 percent. —Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 7 May 2026

But charging an electric vehicle is not necessarily free either, and there are other costs to consider in the overall equation, such as higher sticker price and faster depreciation. —Becca Stanek, TheWeek, 29 Apr. 2026

Leasing a new car is a great way to experience some of the best driving years of a vehicle without the depreciation and ownership issues that come with time. —Charles Singh, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1744, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for depreciation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Kids Definition

depreciation

noun

de·​pre·​ci·​a·​tion

di-ˌprē-shē-ˈā-shən

1

: a decline in the purchasing power or exchange value of money

2

: the act of making a person or a thing seem little or unimportant : disparagement

3

: a decline (as from age or wear and tear) in the value of something

Legal Definition

depreciation

noun

de·​pre·​ci·​a·​tion di-ˌprē-shē-ˈā-shən 

1

: any decrease in the value of property (as machinery) for the purpose of taxation that cannot be offset by current repairs and is carried on company books as a yearly charge amortizing the original cost over the useful life of the property

— accelerated depreciation

: the depreciation of property that was put into use prior to 1980 which is allowed at a faster rate than normal under the depreciation rules in force before the adoption of the Accelerated Cost Recovery System

— straight-line depreciation

: depreciation of an asset by a fixed percentage of its original cost based on its estimated life

2

: a loss in the value of property due to physical deterioration and wear or to obsolescence and lack of adaptability