alimony
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Definition of alimony
Examples of alimony in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Lorenzen fell behind on paying child support and maintenance (alimony). — Michael Mccann, SI.com, "Revisiting Details of the Lorenzen Wright Case and Questions That Remain," 29 July 2019 Their divorce agreement awarded Andrea Kelly a one-time $1 million payment, $250,000 a year in child support and $10,000 a month in alimony. — Megan Crepeau, chicagotribune.com, "R. Kelly, ex-wife fighting over finances for years, newly released divorce filings show," 15 July 2019 But in June, Schneider was sentenced to three days behind bars in the Los Angeles County Jail in June for failure to pay more than $150,000 in owed alimony payments to Elvira. — Jodi Guglielmi, PEOPLE.com, "John Schneider Marries Girlfriend Alicia Allain 'Before God' amid Ongoing Divorce," 3 July 2019 Since then, more than 400 filings have been entered as the couple tried to settle matters of child custody and visitation, alimony and child support. — Doha Madani, NBC News, "Fotis Dulos, husband of missing Connecticut mother, fiercely defends his innocence," 2 July 2019 Voters may also decide whether to ease the state’s restriction on local rent control and whether to impose a five-year limit on alimony payments. — Bob Egelko, SFChronicle.com, "California’s high court walks high wire on initiatives, 2 ex-justices say," 23 June 2019 According to Chemtob, alimony payments are determined by income, with the spouse who makes more money paying the spouse who makes less. — Jennifer Lance, Glamour, "Your Divorce Glossary: A-to-Z Terms You Need to Know," 26 Nov. 2018 Child support can't be taxed or deducted, but alimony would count as income for me. — Ellie Delano, Woman's Day, "Death (Of A Marriage) And Taxes," 26 Jan. 2011 Also called alimony or spousal maintenance. Stipulation. — Jennifer Lance, Glamour, "Your Divorce Glossary: A-to-Z Terms You Need to Know," 26 Nov. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'alimony.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for alimony
alimony
nounFinancial Definition of alimony
What It Is
Alimony is a series of payments made to an ex-spouse or separated spouse according to a divorce decree or separation agreement.
How It Works
Also known as "spousal support," the idea behind alimony is to provide a spouse with lower income or lower income potential with financial support. It is not the same as child support.
In general, a spouse must have been financially dependent on the other spouse for most of the marriage to receive alimony. The calculations and standard amounts vary by state, but each party's ability to earn money, the length of the marriage, the conduct of the parties, and health and age all affect the amount.
Alimony payments are usually made monthly. For tax purposes, noncash payments and voluntary extra payments do not count as alimony. However, payments to a third party on behalf of the ex- or separated spouse sometimes qualify as alimony (medical expenses, housing costs, tuition, etc.), however.
Why It Matters
From a financial perspective, alimony matters because it has significant tax consequences for both the payer and the receiver. Most notably, alimony is tax-deductible for the payer and taxable for the payee. Because of this tax deduction (and the resulting temptation to mask all payments to an ex as alimony), the IRS applies two tests to ensure that the payments are not really child support or property settlement payments (which are not deductible). For this reason, alimony payments should be explicitly described in the divorce decree or separation agreement, and they must be labeled as alimony. Otherwise, the IRS may tax child support as alimony.
Also, alimony payments to an ex- or separated spouse typically only count as alimony for tax purposes in years when the parties did not file a joint tax return or live in the same dwelling. If alimony payments decrease or terminate during the first three years, filers may be able to recapture the taxes paid (and deductions claimed) under the IRS's recapture rule. In any case, both the alimony payer and alimony payee must file an IRS Form 1040 rather than a 1040A or 1040EZ if alimony is involved.
Source: Investing Answers
alimony
noun
English Language Learners Definition of alimony
See the full definition for alimony in the English Language Learners Dictionary
alimony
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Kids Definition of alimony
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alimony
noun
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Legal Definition of alimony
— called also temporary alimony
— called also alimony in gross
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