Dividend Meaning
/ˈdɪvɪdɛnd/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA cash payment of money by a company to its shareholders, usually made periodically (e.g., quarterly or annually).
nounA number or expression that is to be divided by another.
Sentence Examples
The bank has raised its dividend by 20%.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The shareholders expect a quarterly ____ from the profitable corporation.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The bank has raised its ____ by 20%.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French dividende, from Latin dīvidendum (“thing to be divided”), future passive participle of dīvidō (“to divide”), by surface analysis, divide + -end.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"On all dividends which do not exceed six per centum per annum, eight per centum; on dividends exceeding six per centum and not exceeding seven per centum, a tax of nine per centum..."
— 1861, Laws of Pennsylvania of the Session of 1861, page 511:
"Quarterly or annual dividend payments provide good income streams for investors who need cash in the short-term. And for those playing the longer game, dividends can be reinvested to buy even more shares in those same companies."
— 2022 September 14, Paul R. La Monica, “As markets wobble, buy the stocks that pay you back”, in CNN Business:
"That blood and pain paid a dividend, too, even when the subject wasn't a sorcerer."
— 2012, Cameron Haley, Retribution:
"The money I'd spent on getting scuba certified was about to pay a dividend. My half-baked escape plan came together."
— 2014, Bobby Adair, Slow Burn: Dead Fire, Book 4::
"'Why not: you, Elvira, will shortly pay a dividend, that is, have a child.'"
— 2016, Christina Stead, The Beauties and Furies, page 163:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The shareholders expect a quarterly ____ from the profitable corporation.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The bank has raised its ____ by 20%.