tax

1 of 3

noun

often attributive
1
a
: a charge usually of money imposed by authority on persons or property for public purposes
b
: a sum levied on members of an organization to defray expenses
2
: a heavy demand

tax

2 of 3

verb

taxed; taxing; taxes

transitive verb

1
: to levy a tax on
2
: to make onerous and rigorous demands on
the job taxed her strength
3
: charge, accuse
taxed him with neglect of duty
also : censure
4
: to assess or determine judicially the amount of (costs in a court action)
5
obsolete : to enter (a name) in a list
there went out a decree … that all the world should be taxedLuke 2:1 (King James Version)
taxable adjective
taxer noun

tax-

3 of 3

combining form

variants or taxo- or less commonly taxi-
: arrangement
taxeme
taxidermy

Examples of tax in a Sentence

Noun The decision was made to raise taxes. He was accused of evading taxes. What was your income before taxes? What is the amount of tax to be paid? What was your income before tax? Verb He believes in taxing the rich to give to the poor. You are taxed according to your income. puzzles that tax your brain
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
But if a closure goes longer, more than half of IRS employees would face furloughs at the height of tax filing season. Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024 Werfel took over an agency that was understaffed and drowning in unprocessed tax returns after decades of underfunding. Fatima Hussein, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 For a $200,000 home, that would be an increase of $432, increasing the schools tax from $1,588 to $2,020. Rory Linnane, Journal Sentinel, 19 Mar. 2024 Beyond bringing in tax revenue for government coffers, Wall Street workers contribute substantially to the local Gotham economy. Jeanne Sahadi, CNN, 19 Mar. 2024 While the council could impose a transaction privilege tax, or a sales tax, any property tax will have to go to voters before it is implemented. The Arizona Republic, 18 Mar. 2024 Our tax experts First is Henry Grzes, lead manager for Tax Practice & Ethics with the American Institute of CPAs. Casey Delbasso, ABC News, 18 Mar. 2024 The annual school tax increase on a $100,000 house would be about $242 annually. Sue Kiesewetter, The Enquirer, 17 Mar. 2024 Rates: $887 per night, plus a 21 percent tax and service charge. Annie Daly, Robb Report, 8 Mar. 2024
Verb
The multipart proposal, structured to force state senators to haggle, seeks an amendment to the Maryland Constitution that would legalize and tax online poker and other internet gambling. Erin Cox, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 All three states are popular retirement havens that don’t tax Social Security payments. Michael Kolomatsky, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024 In the past decade or so, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and other Democrats have proposed a variety of methods to tax the ultra-wealthy, and the proposal for a statutory minimum is the latest stab at it. John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 12 Mar. 2024 Weaving gives an intense and taxing physical performance that requires her to run around a lot, or else to scream her lungs out without making any noise whatsoever. Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Mar. 2024 A day after lawmakers passed a separate bill allowing Indianapolis to create a special downtown taxing district — with some new restrictions — lawmakers decided the legislation wasn't good enough. Brittany Carloni, The Indianapolis Star, 9 Mar. 2024 This means paying taxes on earnings can be much more costly than other investments that may be taxed at long-term capital gains rates instead. Robert Farrington, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 But putting the proposals in his prime-time address Thursday reflects part of Biden’s 2024 strategy to campaign on economic inequality, as Democrats emphasize their plans to reduce the deficit and expand social programs by taxing the wealthy. Jeff Stein, Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2024 The owners of those properties paid nearly $1 million in real estate taxes last year, meaning local taxing districts — chief among them Kansas City Public Schools — could take a financial hit initially, unless arrangements were made to reimburse them in some way. Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 1 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tax.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, to estimate, assess, tax, from Anglo-French taxer, from Medieval Latin taxare, from Latin, to feel, estimate, censure, frequentative of tangere to touch — more at tangent entry 2

Combining form

Greek taxi-, from taxis

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Time Traveler
The first known use of tax was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near tax

Cite this Entry

“Tax.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tax. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tax

1 of 2 verb
1
: to require to pay a tax
2
: to accuse of something
taxed them with carelessness
3
: to make heavy demands on : strain
taxed our strength
taxer noun

tax

2 of 2 noun
1
: a charge usually of money set by authority on persons or property for public purposes
2
: something (as an effort or duty) that makes heavy demands : strain

Legal Definition

tax

1 of 2 transitive verb
1
: to assess or determine judicially the amount of (costs of an action in court)
2
: to levy a tax on
tax the corporation
tax capital gains
taxer noun

tax

2 of 2 noun
often attributive
1
: a charge usually of money imposed by legislative or other public authority upon persons or property for public purposes
2
: a sum levied on members of an organization to defray expenses
Etymology

Transitive verb

Medieval Latin taxare to assess for taxation, tax, from Latin, to assess, value, fix

More from Merriam-Webster on tax

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