negative cash flow

Meaning

1. 1noununcountablefinance

   A situation in which a person or business spends more money than it receives during a given period.

   Grammar: Usually uncountable: the firm has negative cash flow, not 'a negative cash flows'.

   Patterns

   • negative cash flow from something
   • have negative cash flow

   The shop had negative cash flow in January because it paid for stock before the sales came in.

   Negative cash flow for several months forced the owners to take out a loan.

   The report showed negative cash flow from operations, despite rising sales.

Common combinations

experience negative cash flow

Many start-ups experience negative cash flow in the first year.

report negative cash flow

The company reported negative cash flow for the quarter.

cause negative cash flow

Late-paying customers can cause negative cash flow.

avoid negative cash flow

Careful budgeting helps small firms avoid negative cash flow.

negative cash flow from operations

Negative cash flow from operations worried the investors.

Synonyms and how they differ

cash deficit

Cash deficit names the shortfall itself, whereas negative cash flow describes the ongoing movement of money.

cash burn

Cash burn is informal and is used mainly of young companies spending investor money.

cash shortfall

Cash shortfall focuses on not having enough money to pay bills at a particular moment.

Opposites

Word family

cash flow noun

the movement of money in and out of a business

cash-flow adjective

used before a noun, as in a cash-flow statement

cash-rich adjective

having plenty of ready money

Commonly confused: negative cash flow or net loss?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “negative cash flow”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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