1
: the act of expending
2
: expenditure, payment
outlays for national defense
Examples of outlay in a Sentence
Verb
the nation had outlaid nearly 20 billion dollars on social programs at that point
Noun
The initial outlay for the program will be 2.4 million dollars.
Maintaining a horse requires considerable outlay.
Recent Examples on the Web
Paresh Dave, Wired News, 24 Dec. 2025
Vasquez then asked if the RDA had outlaid any money for LaPorte County for shoreline development.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
Russell Flannery, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
In certain models, this can allow investors to gain exposure to assets that would otherwise require significant capital outlay, especially in places like the Global South.
—Maria Williams, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for outlay
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Verb
Microsoft plans to outlay $4 billion in the next five years worldwide.
—Paresh Dave, Wired News, 24 Dec. 2025
Vasquez then asked if the RDA had outlaid any money for LaPorte County for shoreline development.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2025
Noun
Focus Media has thrived with overall gains by China’s well-off consumers and advertising outlays.
—Russell Flannery, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
In certain models, this can allow investors to gain exposure to assets that would otherwise require significant capital outlay, especially in places like the Global South.
—Maria Williams, USA Today, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for outlay
Cite this Entry
“Outlay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outlay. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
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