capitalize
verb
, ˈkap-tə-\
Definition of capitalize
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Synonyms & Antonyms for capitalize
Synonyms
bankroll, endow, finance, fund, stake, subsidize, underwrite
Antonyms
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Examples of capitalize in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But the Revolution, who visit conference rivals New York City FC and Orlando City SC in their next two games, squandered one of their last chances to capitalize on home-field advantage. — Frank Dell’apa, BostonGlobe.com, "It’s Gustavo Bou again as Revs secure draw late," 1 Sep. 2019 Armstrong adds that Harper also encouraged Kirk to design and market a line of headscarves to capitalize on the trend, but Kirk demurred, content with her role on the show. — Laurie Brookins, The Hollywood Reporter, "For a Generation, Valerie Harper's Rhoda Defined Imaginative Boho Style," 31 Aug. 2019 Those acquisitions are designed to help Mastercard capitalize on advancements made in the real-time payments space, which took a big step forward with the 2017 launch of The Clearing House’s RTP platform. — Rey Mashayekhi, Fortune, "How The Real Time Payments Revolution is Pushing Mastercard Beyond Cards," 31 Aug. 2019 Kentucky’s offense was unable to capitalize though and had to settle for a 46-yard Chance Poore field goal to take a 17-14 lead. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky football opens 2019 season with win over Toledo," 31 Aug. 2019 So there could be an opportunity for the Vikings to capitalize on the aforementioned dearth of line talent across the NFL. — Albert Breer, SI.com, "Players Who Might Be Traded Ahead of NFL Roster Cuts," 30 Aug. 2019 Minutes later, West Hills’ Kip Klingerman intercepted a pass at the 29-yard line, but the Wolf Pack were unable to capitalize. — Jim Lindgren, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Rejuvenated Valhalla rallies past West Hills," 30 Aug. 2019 That hyper-awareness of murky and sometimes-distant criminal threats has been widely criticized by privacy advocates, who argue that Ring has sought to turn police officers into surveillance-system salespeople and capitalize on neighborhood fears. — Drew Harwell, Anchorage Daily News, "Doorbell-camera maker Ring has partnered with 400 police forces, extending surveillance reach," 28 Aug. 2019 Trump was dealt a great hand, in other words, but has done little to capitalize on it. — Alex Shephard, The New Republic, "Trump Previews His Response to the Next Recession," 27 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'capitalize.' 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 capitalize
capitalize
verbFinancial Definition of capitalize
What It Is
Capitalizing refers to the accounting practice of characterizing the costs of an asset purchase as a long-term asset on the balance sheet instead of an expense on the income statement.
How It Works
Companies capitalize the cost of asset purchases in order to spread out the cost of the assets over many reporting periods. This way, net income is not affected disproportionately in the reporting period in which the asset was purchased.
Rather than being listed as one large expense in one reporting period, a capitalized asset cost will be expensed via depreciation over many reporting periods. On the balance sheet, it will appear as a long-term asset and cash debit. The income statement will also account for a portion of the asset's cost via depreciation expenses.
To illustrate, suppose Company XYZ purchases equipment for $10,000. Rather than report the full $10,000 cost in that period, the company characterizes the purchase as a $10,000 long-term asset. On the balance sheet, the long-term asset account increases and the cash account decreases by $10,000.
As the long-term asset depreciates, the depreciation expense is reported on the income statement. As a result, Company XYZ's bottom line is not grossly affected by the substantial asset purchase in that period. The remainder of the $10,000 will, however, need to be continually reported as a depreciation expense until the asset has fully depreciated.
Why It Matters
Management's decision as to whether to capitalize or expense a purchase has a direct impact on its bottom line. If a company were to report the total cost of an asset purchase as an expense on its income statement (which is to say not capitalize), the cost, depending on the size, it would significantly reduce their net income figure for the reporting period.
Because earnings are probably the single most important indicator of a company's financial strength and growth potential, they are used by investment analysts to provide estimates of a company's growth potential and offer target price estimates for investors interested in purchasing shares. Therefore, company management has a huge interest in managing the way earnings are reported.
Source: Investing Answers
capitalize
verb
English Language Learners Definition of capitalize
See the full definition for capitalize in the English Language Learners Dictionary
capitalize
verb
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