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

Meeks, head of technology research at Freedom Capital Markets, said Nvidia’s funk is a consequence of the fears that began over the summer around circular AI investing, GPU depreciation, and intensifying competition in the chipmaking space from Big Tech peers such as Google and Amazon . —Pia Singh, CNBC, 14 Jan. 2026

Ebitda — earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization — were negative. —Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026

The currency and rate depreciation has directly impacted what’s available in stores — and at what price. —Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2026

The counterargument is that Porsche 911s tend to experience minimal depreciation anyway, and the Turbo S is no exception. —Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 5 Jan. 2026

The protests began on Sunday after shopkeepers and merchants demonstrated against soaring inflation, unemployment and the sharp depreciation of Iran’s currency. —Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 1 Jan. 2026

The Italian womenswear brand, positioned in the affordable luxury market range, in 2024 reported revenues of more than 200 million euros, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of more than 30 million euros. —Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 15 Dec. 2025

But according to a note last week from Alpine Macro, chip depreciation fears are overstated for three reasons. —Jason Ma, Fortune, 15 Dec. 2025

Since 2018, the country has accumulated around $22 million in unpaid bills (far more in Zipline’s eyes after the cedi’s steep depreciation from 2021 to 2024). —Bright Simons, semafor.com, 8 Dec. 2025

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