recoup

verb

re·​coup ri-ˈküp How to pronounce recoup (audio)
recouped; recouping; recoups

transitive verb

1
a
: to get an equivalent for (losses) : make up for
b
: reimburse, compensate
recoup a person for losses
2
: regain
an attempt to recoup his fortune

intransitive verb

: to make good or make up for something lost
also : recuperate
recoupable adjective
recoupment noun

Examples of recoup in a Sentence

It will be hard for us to recoup the loss. Movie studios can turn to video sales to recoup the costs of a movie that does poorly at the box office. She recouped only a portion of her investment.
Recent Examples on the Web President Biden added nearly $80 billion in IRS funding to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 with the hope that the investment would recoup as much as $400 billion over the next decade in unpaid taxes from wealthy people and companies. Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 13 Mar. 2024 In a case where fertility treatment goes wrong, couples could try to recoup those costs through civil lawsuits that sometimes treat frozen embryos as property. Katherine Drabiak, The Conversation, 7 Mar. 2024 Instead, authors would take a bet on downstream earnings after initial production costs are recouped. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Mar. 2024 In other words, developers won’t recoup their investments in conversion projects unless prices drop. Sydney Lake, Fortune, 28 Feb. 2024 Although some interpret it as a way to increase work-life balance, others define it as a way to recoup unpaid or unappreciated hours of service. Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024 Just as a market darling of the dot-com era, Cisco Systems Inc., is still a successful company, but investors who bought the stock around its peak and held on are still waiting to recoup their losses — 24 years later. Esha Day, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2024 How are those levels of investments on the supply side going to be recouped? Rodrigo Madanes, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The process is six to eight times costlier than bulldozing the waste into a hole in the ground, Mr. McQuillan estimated, although Triumvirate recoups some costs from the sale of the final products. Ted Alcorn, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'recoup.' 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

French recouper to cut back, from Old French, from re- + couper to cut — more at cope entry 1

First Known Use

1628, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of recoup was in 1628

Dictionary Entries Near recoup

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

recoup

verb
re·​coup ri-ˈküp How to pronounce recoup (audio)
1
: to make up for : recover
recoup a loss
2
: reimburse, compensate
recoup a person for losses
recoupment noun

Legal Definition

recoup

transitive verb
re·​coup ri-ˈküp How to pronounce recoup (audio)
: recover sense 1
would recoup the overpayment from current claims paymentsCity of Cordova v. Medicaid Rate Commn., 789 P.2d 346 (1990)

More from Merriam-Webster on recoup

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