line item

noun

: an appropriation that is itemized on a separate line in a budget

line-item

ˈlīn-ˈī-təm 

adjective

Examples of line item in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For the first 10 months of fiscal 2026, Washington’s carrying costs grew an astounding 14%, from $846 to $963 billion versus the same period in FY 2025, far and away the biggest jump of any expense line item. — Shawn Tully, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2026

Communication is one line item inside those totals, competing with everything else in them. — Jamil Wyne, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026

In the first 10 months of the 2026 fiscal year, interest costs have eclipsed Medicare healthcare outlays to become the second-largest line item in the federal budget, behind the Social Security pension system. — Reuters, NBC news, 19 Aug. 2026

It wasn’t categorized as a growth investment but went into the same partnerships-and-alliances line item as vendors providing IT help-desk services. — Harvard Business Review, 11 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1962, in the meaning defined above