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stock option

stock option

32 4.8
A right to buy company shares later at a fixed price, often given to employees
  • noun
  • /stɑk ˈɑpʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : opción sobre acciones
  • Employees at the company received stock options that allowed them to buy shares at a reduced price.
  • stock options and bonuses

Employee stock options are an example of a forward start option.

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Examples

  • Soon after his wife died in the accident, Heller quit the company, cashed in his stock options and disappeared.

  • CEOs get paid mainly with stock options and thus want a high share price ASAP.

    Blog text (27)
  • Pay is low, but the stock options should make up for it.

  • After every land deal, he gets more stock options.

  • I'll cash in some stock options.

  • I'll get stock options, great benefits.

  • A few thousand worth of stock options would stand to make you quite a pile.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • A large portion of the wealthy prefer to be paid in stock and stock options.

    Blog text (8)
  • Just let your stock options vest and get rich.

  • Nearly 17,000 employees are holding more than 8 million stock options with an exercise price of at least $400.

    Blog text (3)

Synonyms

option
vsstock option
  • Specialized
256 7.4

A right to buy or sell something at a set price before a set time

is specifically about buying company shares as employee compensation
call option
vsstock option
  • Specialized
2 7.7

A contract that lets someone choose to buy something of value at a set price for a limited time

is limited to company shares and given as employee benefit
incentive stock option
vsstock option
  • Specialized
7.4

An offer that lets employees buy company shares later if the company meets its goals

is a contract letting employees buy shares at a fixed price as benefit
incentive option
vsstock option
  • Specialized
7.7

A right to buy company stock at a set price if the company meets business goals

is granted more broadly to employees as a benefit, not only to executives

How Generous

profit sharing
  • Specialized
5 3.0
stock option
  • Specialized
32 4.8
bonus
310 2.2
salary
642 1.3

Surface Forms

stock option singular
stock options plural

Morphology

stock + option

The meaning ('a right to buy company shares at a fixed price') is directly compositional from 'stock' (a share in a company) + 'option' (a right to buy or sell). This noun‑noun compounding follows standard English and has clear parallels in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Stock option may come from combining stock, meaning a company's share, and option, meaning a choice; imagine a ticket that lets you buy a share later at a fixed price. That's why the term means 'a right but not the obligation to buy company stock at a fixed price'.