profit Definition
profit (präf′it)
noun
- advantage; gain; benefit
- monetary gain from business transactions
- the ratio of this to the amount of capital invested
- proceeds from property or investments
- the sum remaining after all costs, direct and indirect, are deducted from the income of a business, the selling price, etc.
Etymology: OFr < L profectus, pp. of proficere, to profit, lit., to advance: see proficient
intransitive verb
- to be of advantage or benefit
- to reap an advantage, financial or otherwise; benefit
transitive verb
to be of profit or advantage to
profit Related Forms
profit Synonyms
profit
n.
Advantage
Excess of receipts over expenditures
gain, return(s), proceeds, receipts, take*, gate*, emolument*, acquisition*, rake-off*, accumulation*, saving*, aggrandizement, augmentation*, interest*, remuneration*, earnings. *
profit Synonyms
profit
v.
profit Finance Definition
profit Law Definition
n
profit Usage Examples
Converse of object
- operate: Sales revenues forged ahead, growing 19 % year on year whilst operating profit increased by 15 % .
- maximize: These forces will continue to insist that all production should be aimed at maximizing profit.
- announce: Ellis & Everard announced pre-tax profits of 32 million pounds for the year ending April 1999.
- generate: Last year, its 70,000 employees helped generate pre-tax profits of £ 350m.
- earn: The group that earns the most profit at the end of the project is the winner.
Adjective modifier
- pre-tax: The company made £ 83 million pre-tax profit last year.
- taxable: Rentals can normally be offset against taxable profit * .
- gross: Our retail energy supply gross profit grew by 14 % to £ 95 million.
- net: Tax is then charged o the net rental income profit.
- non: The Radon Council are a non profit making regulatory body for the radon industry.
Modifies a noun
- margin: With similar price declines expected, the squeeze on profit margins looks set to continue.
- motive: The hypothetical tenant in an ability to pay scenario is likely to have no profit motive.
- maximization: Capital, on the other hand seeks profit maximization.
- sharing: Stock bonus plan: A type of profit sharing plan, where contributions are made in the form of company stock.
- warning: That is the equivalent of a finance director giving two profit warnings in a year.
Noun used with modifier
- operating: Operating profits increased by 17 % to £ 47 million.
- windfall: To add insult to injury, the scheme is proving a recipe for windfall profits.
- trading: As a result we even posted a small overall trading profit for the year.
Preposition: before
taxation: Taxation As in 2003, the tax provision exceeds the profit before taxation shown in the statutory accounts.
Preposition: of
pound: Ellis & Everard announced pre-tax profits of 32 million pounds for the year ending April 1999.
Browse dictionary entries near profit
- ‹ profiling
- ‹ profile
- ‹ proficient
- ‹ proficiency
- ‹ proffer
- ‹ professoriate
- ‹ professorial
- ‹ professor
- ‹ professionalize
- ‹ professionalism

