I. tax 1 S1 W1 /tæks/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ tax , ↑ taxation ; adjective : ↑ taxable , ↑ taxing ; verb : ↑ tax ]
[uncountable and countable] an amount of money that you must pay to the government according to your income, property, goods etc and that is used to pay for public services
tax on
a tax on fuel
He already pays 40% tax on his income.
before/after tax
profits before tax of £85.9 m
⇨ ↑ capital gains tax , ⇨ corporation tax at ↑ corporation (1), ⇨ ↑ council tax , ↑ income tax , ↑ sales tax , ↑ stealth tax , ↑ VAT , ↑ PAYE
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ pay tax
Many people feel they are paying too much tax.
▪ raise/increase taxes ( also put up taxes British English )
He claimed the Labour Party would put up taxes.
▪ lower/cut/reduce taxes
There’s no point promising to cut taxes if you can’t afford it.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + tax
▪ high
Higher taxes will slow down consumer spending.
▪ low
Republican voters say they want lower taxes and sensible spending cuts.
▪ income tax (=tax paid on money that you earn)
The rich should pay more income tax.
▪ sales tax (=a tax on things you buy)
We have to pay 15% sales tax on everything we buy.
▪ inheritance tax (=tax paid on money, property etc that you receive from someone when they die)
Inheritance tax applies to the total value of the deceased’s assets.
▪ a direct tax (=a tax on income)
The government’s revenue comes mainly from direct taxes.
▪ an indirect tax (=a tax on things you buy)
The effect of indirect taxes is to raise the prices of goods.
▪ a flat (rate) tax (=a tax that is the same for different people or things)
Corporate taxes are to be abolished and replaced by a flat rate tax.
■ tax + NOUN
▪ the tax rate/the rate of tax
The government reduced the basic rate of tax to 25p in the pound.
▪ tax cuts
He believes that big tax cuts will encourage economic growth.
▪ tax increases
He accused the president of planning the biggest tax increases in U.S. history.
▪ tax incentives (=lower taxes that encourage people to do something)
We have introduced new tax incentives for savings.
▪ a tax allowance (=an amount you can earn without paying tax on it)
Cutting personal tax allowances penalizes the poor.
▪ the tax burden (=the amount of tax paid)
The total tax burden has risen only slightly.
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THESAURUS
▪ tax money that you must pay to the government, especially from the money you earn, or as an additional payment when you buy something:
How much income tax do you pay each month?
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The Republicans promised to reduce taxes before the last election.
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Consumers are angry that the tax on petrol has gone up yet again.
▪ duty a tax you pay on something you buy:
The budget also sharply raised the duty on alcohol and tobacco.
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customs duty (=tax you pay on goods you buy and bring into the country)
▪ tariff a tax on goods coming into a country or going out of a country, especially to protect a country’s industry from cheap goods from other countries:
the import tariffs on hi-tech equipment
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The government’s tariff and trade policies came under fierce attack.
▪ levy an extra amount of money that you have to pay the government, usually as a tax, often in order to encourage people not to use or do something:
A new levy on fuel inefficient vehicles has been proposed.
▪ surcharge an amount of money that you have to pay in addition to the agreed or stated price of something:
British Airways will increase its fuel surcharge on all airline tickets from June 3.
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When you get cash at some machines, you have to pay an ATM surcharge.
II. tax 2 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ tax , ↑ taxation ; adjective : ↑ taxable , ↑ taxing ; verb : ↑ tax ]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: taxer 'to make a judgment about, tax' , from Latin taxare 'to feel, make a judgment about, blame' , from tangere ; ⇨ ↑ tangible ]
1 . to charge a tax on something
tax something at 10%/a higher rate etc
They may be taxed at a higher rate.
tax somebody on something
The individual is taxed on the amount of dividend received.
Cigarettes are heavily taxed in Britain.
2 . British English to pay the sum of money charged each year for using a vehicle on British roads ⇨ ↑ car tax , ↑ road tax
3 . to make someone have to work hard or make an effort
tax sb’s patience/strength etc
The kids are really taxing my patience today.
It shouldn’t tax your brain too much.
⇨ ↑ taxing
tax somebody with something phrasal verb formal
to complain to someone they have done something wrong