Reimburse

/ˌriːɪmˈbɜːrs/

verbmedium📊CommonGeneral
1 meaning3 questions

Definitions

1

To repay (a person) for money spent or losses incurred.

/ˌriːɪmˈbɜːrs/

verbneutralmedium
General

To repay someone for expenses incurred.

I will reimburse you for the cost of the groceries.

💡 Simply: Imagine your friend paid for the pizza, and you give them your share back. That's reimbursement! It's like getting your money back after you've spent it.

👶 For kids: To pay someone back for something they paid for.

More Examples

2

The company reimbursed her for her travel expenses.

3

Make sure to keep your receipts so you can be reimbursed.

4

The government reimburses hospitals for treating patients.

How It's Used

Finance

"The company will reimburse employees for travel expenses."

Insurance

"The insurance company reimbursed the patient for their medical bills."

Synonyms & Antonyms

From French *rembourser* (to refund), from *re-* (again) + *bourse* (purse, bag), ultimately from Latin *bursa* (leather bag).

The word has been in use since the 16th century, originally referring to repayment in a financial context.

Memory tip

Remember the 'burse' (purse). You're putting money back into someone's purse or account.

Word Origin

LanguageFrench, Latin
Original meaning

"to pay back, to refund"

reimburse for expensesreimburse the costreimburse employeesrequest reimbursementeligible for reimbursement

Common misspellings

reembursereimbursere-imburse

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written