DictionaryAI

investment

noun
in-VEST-muhnt/ɪnˈvɛstmənt/

Pluralinvestments

5 meanings of investment

Practice

  1. 1
    putting money innouncountable or uncountable
    The act of putting money, time, or effort into something in the hope of a profit or other benefit.

    Like a farmer sowing seed, accepting a lean season now for a larger harvest later.

    His early investment in the startup paid off when it went public.

    Years of steady investment in public schools have raised graduation rates across the state.

    UsageUse in for what gets the money or time: investment in schools; you make an investment.

    Note

    Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter (1850) applies it to a modest outlay on ink, paper and steel pens, so the sense need not be grand. Its opposite is divestment, the withdrawal of capital.

  2. 2
    nouncountable
    A purchase or expense made in the hope that it will earn money or prove worth what was spent on it.

    The espresso machine paid for itself within a year, so it turned out to be a smart investment.

    Rare coins and vintage watches can be risky investments for anyone who needs cash quickly.

    UsageOften with a judging word: a good investment, a smart investment, a risky investment.

    Similarpurchase, buy

  3. 3
    nounobsoletecountable
    A garment or robe, especially one worn in religious or ceremonial settings.
    Whose white investments figure innocence.
    1591, William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt,”
    Note

    Shakespeare still uses the word for clothing. In Henry IV, Part 2, "white investments figure innocence": the white robes stand for the wearers' purity. The sense is obsolete. In older verse, read it as garments. In current writing, use vestment or robe instead, because readers would otherwise take it as the financial meaning.

    Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • Shakespeare uses investment for clothing in Henry IV, Part 2; the quoted words occur in Westmoreland's speech to the Archbishop. folger.edu
    • The white robes symbolize innocence or purity. folger.edu
    • The clothing sense is obsolete. en.wiktionary.org

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    noun
    The surrounding or blockading of a place by an armed force, or the state of being so surrounded.
  2. 5
    noun
    A mixture of silica sand and plaster that, poured around a wax pattern, forms a negative mold for casting metals such as bronze.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of investment apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

Formed from the verb "invest" combined with the suffix "-ment".

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 1 fact