Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
excise tax

excise tax

11 5.5
A tax on goods like tobacco and alcohol charged for each item or amount sold
  • noun
  • /ˈɛkˌsaɪz tæks/
  • Specialized
translation icon : impuesto especial
  • A 16 percent excise tax was imposed on "excess" distributions and accumulations from retirement vehicles.
  • excise tax on gasoline
  • eighty percent excise tax
  • excise tax imposed

So not that long ago, Washington state passed an excise tax on capital gains.

Examples

  • The bill includes a variety of measures that increase revenue, such as the excise tax on high-cost insurance plans.

    Academic text (2011)

  • The tax on the employer is an indirect excise tax on the employer/employee relationship.

    Blog text (28)

  • This is the the state excise tax that gets put on tobacco.

  • So not that long ago, Washington state passed an excise tax on capital gains.

    ReasonTV

  • Now, consider what happens if an excise tax of $10 per watch is imposed, raising the price to $50.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Recently in the Czech Republic, there was a proposal to increase the excise tax on smoking.

  • As if this were not enough, there is an excise tax on excess distributions.

    Academic text (1990)

  • In April, counties learned that $536,000 in excise tax revenues hadn't been distributed.

    Blog text (10)

  • Legislation passed by Congress in 1996 suspended, but did not eliminate, the excise tax on excess distributions received in 1997, 1998, and 1999.

    Academic text (1997)

  • Washington state recently implemented an excise tax on sugary beverages to discourage excessive consumption.

Synonyms

excise
vsexcise tax
  • Specialized
13 7.9

A tax on goods made or sold in a country, often on alcohol

is based on quantity produced, sold, or consumed rather than on property or income

How High

tax
∞ 1.0
duty
71 3.0
excise tax
  • Specialized
11 5.5
surcharge
31 5.5
fee
729 1.0

Surface Forms

excise tax singular
excise taxes plural

Morphology

excise + tax

The meaning 'a tax on certain goods or services' is directly and compositionally derived from 'excise' (a government charge on certain goods/services) combined with 'tax' (a mandatory government charge); the phrase simply names a specific type of tax. This noun+noun construction is common cross-linguistically and follows standard English modification patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The phrase excise tax may come from an old word excise that meant 'to cut out'. Imagine the government taking a small 'cut' from each bottle or sale, so excise tax means a tax on certain goods or activities.