Meaning & use
reimbursed
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“reimbursed” is a form of “reimburse”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Past tense and past participle of reimburse: paid back money someone had spent or lost.
Grammar: Takes a person and often for: they reimbursed me for the ticket.
Patterns
- reimbursed someone for something
- be reimbursed for something
My company reimbursed me for the train fare.
You will be reimbursed within two weeks.
The airline reimbursed all passengers whose flights were canceled.
verbtransitiveformal
Repaid an amount of money to a person or organization that paid it first.
Grammar: The money can be the object: reimbursed the costs.
Patterns
- reimbursed something to someone
The insurer reimbursed the full repair cost.
The city reimbursed the fees to residents.
He reimbursed the deposit once the damage was checked.
Common combinations
- fully reimbursed
- She was fully reimbursed for her travel.
- reimbursed for expenses
- Volunteers are reimbursed for expenses.
- reimbursed in full
- The customer was reimbursed in full.
- promptly reimbursed
- Claims were promptly reimbursed by the insurer.
Synonyms and how they differ
- repaid
- This is more general and fits any debt, while reimbursed implies paying back an expense someone covered.
- compensated
- This covers repayment for loss or harm as well as costs, and it is broader than reimbursed.
- refunded
- This is used when the seller gives your payment back, unlike a third party reimbursing a cost.
- paid back
- This is the informal equivalent in everyday speech.
Opposites
Word family
- reimburse verb
- to repay costs
- reimbursement noun
- the repayment itself
- reimbursable adjective
- able to be repaid
- purse noun
- the root idea of money pouch
Commonly confused: reimbursed or refunded?
reimbursed vs refunded
A refund returns your payment for a purchase, while reimbursement repays an expense you covered, often by an employer or insurer.
Practice
My employer ___ me for the hotel bill after the business trip.
Choose one answer.
Reimbursed is the past form taking a person object plus for; reimbursed to would need a different structure and the other forms are not past.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “reimbursed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.