windfall

noun

wind·​fall ˈwin(d)-ˌfȯl How to pronounce windfall (audio)
1
: something (such as a tree or fruit) blown down by the wind
2
: an unexpected, unearned, or sudden gain or advantage

Examples of windfall in a Sentence

They received a windfall because of the tax cuts. hitting the lottery jackpot was an incredible windfall for the recently laid-off worker
Recent Examples on the Web For now, Europe is only looking at tapping the windfall profits. Beatriz Ríos, Washington Post, 21 Mar. 2024 Trump could receive a financial windfall from a looming deal to put his social media company, Trump Media & Technology Group, on the stock market under the symbol DJT. Michael R. Sisak, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 Congress must rein in this kind of war profiteering by more closely examining contracts, taking back payments that turn out to be excessive, and creating a tax on windfall profits. Bernie Sanders, Foreign Affairs, 18 Mar. 2024 Investing for impact is rated a top five money priority for women across generations who receive a financial windfall, according to The Ellevest Women and Wealth Survey 2024: Great Wealth Transfer survey. Holly Corbett, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Earlier this month, the European Union passed a law to set aside windfall profits generated from frozen Russian central bank assets. Fatima Hussein, Quartz, 27 Feb. 2024 Now the on-field bounty must match the financial windfall. Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 22 Feb. 2024 There are more than 2 million unplugged oil and gas wells that will need to be cleaned up, and the current production boom and windfall profits for industry giants have obscured the bill’s imminent arrival. Mark Olalde, ProPublica, 22 Feb. 2024 The lottery player has plans on how to use her windfall of cash. Makiya Seminera, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of windfall was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near windfall

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

windfall

noun
wind·​fall -ˌfȯl How to pronounce windfall (audio)
1
: something (as a tree or fruit) blown down by the wind
2
: an unexpected gift, gain, or help

More from Merriam-Webster on windfall

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