revenue

revenue — noun

1. Money that a business, organization, or government receives from its normal acti

1.nounB2
Definition

Money that a business, organization, or government receives from its normal activities, such as selling products or providing services.

Example

The company's annual revenue grew by 12% after it launched the new electric bicycle.

annual revenue + growth collocation

Padma checked the quarterly revenue figures before her meeting with the investors.

Common collocations
  • annual revenue
  • quarterly revenue
  • total revenue
  • revenue growth
  • revenue stream
  • generate revenue
  • increase revenue
  • boost revenue
  • revenue from sales
Synonyms
  • income

    broader term — used for both personal and organisational earnings; less formal in business contexts

  • earnings

    usually refers to money from work or investment; more personal than revenue

  • turnover

    British business term for total sales income within a period; more specific than revenue

  • proceeds

    money from a single event or sale, not ongoing operations

Antonyms
  • expenses

    the money a business spends in its operations

  • costs

    the amount of money needed to produce goods or services

Grammar Patterns

revenue + from + noun phrase

annual / quarterly / total + revenue

Usage Note

Revenue is the total amount of money received before any costs or expenses are subtracted. Do not confuse with profit, which is what remains after costs are deducted. The plural form 'revenues' is used in formal business contexts when referring to income from separate sources (e.g., 'the company's advertising and subscription revenues').

Common Mistakes

The company's revenue was $2 million, and after paying staff it still had $500,000.
The company's revenue was $2 million, and after paying staff its profit was $500,000.
Revenue is the total incoming money; profit is what remains after costs.
She earned a high revenue from her part-time job.
She earned a high income from her part-time job.
Revenue refers to organisational income, not an individual's salary or wages.

2. Funds collected by a government through compulsory taxes on individuals and busi

2.nounB2
Definition

Funds collected by a government through compulsory taxes on individuals and businesses, used to pay for public services.

Example

The government uses tax revenue to pay for schools, roads, and hospitals across the country.

tax revenue — fixed compound for government income from taxes

A fall in tax revenue forced the city to cut its public library funding.

Common collocations
  • tax revenue
  • government revenue
  • national revenue
  • revenue from taxes
  • collect revenue
  • raise revenue
  • lose revenue
  • revenue shortfall
  • revenue from income tax
Synonyms
  • tax receipts

    more specific — refers to the actual amount of tax collected, often used in official reports

  • public revenue

    formal term for government income from all sources including taxes

  • government income

    broader and more general; includes non-tax income such as fees

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

tax revenue

revenue + from + taxes

revenue from + noun (e.g. income tax)

Usage Note

In this sense, revenue always refers to the government's income from taxation. Distinguish from sense 1 (TOTAL INCOME), which covers income from any regular source including business sales. If you can replace 'revenue' with 'tax income' without changing the meaning, this is the correct sense.

Common Mistakes

Tax revenue is the profit the government makes from taxes.
Tax revenue is the total amount the government collects from taxes.
Revenue is total incoming money, not the amount left after costs.
The government's revenue from parking meters increased last year.' (when referring to fees for a service)
The government's revenue from parking fines increased last year.
Service fees are sense 1; this sense is specifically about compulsory tax payments.

Word family

  • revenues
    nounB2
  • revenuer
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words refer to incoming money, but they differ in scope and context. 'Income' is the broadest term, used for both personal wages and organisational money — anyone can have an income. 'Earnings' emphasises money gained through work or investment and is more personal than revenue; a freelancer tracks her earnings, while a corporation reports revenue. 'Turnover' (chiefly British) measures total sales within a period and is narrower than revenue, which may also include interest, fees, or other non-sale income. 'Receipts' refers to money actually received in a given period, often used for cash-based businesses or ticket sales. For example: 'The café's weekly receipts were low, but its annual income from catering was healthy.'

income ↗earnings ↗turnover ↗receipts

Common collocations

Nouns

  • revenue source
  • revenue stream
  • revenue growth
  • revenue decline
  • revenue target
  • revenue report

Phrases

  • source of revenue
  • loss of revenue
  • increase in revenue
  • drop in revenue
  • rise in revenue

Prepositions

  • revenue from
  • revenue of

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchAnglo-FrenchEnglish

'Revenue' comes from the Latin verb 'revenire', which means 'to come back'. The idea is that money 'comes back' to a government or a business after people buy things or pay taxes. It entered English through Old French ('revenue') in the 15th century, originally referring to income from land or property.