pretax

adjective

pre·​tax ˌprē-ˈtaks 

variants or pre-tax

: existing before provision for taxes : before taxes are deducted

pretax earnings/profits

The most common self-directed plans, 401(k) plans, leave it up to employees to voluntarily contribute part of their pretax salary.

—Ellen E. Schultz

Examples of pretax in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Barclays reported slight beats on both its top- and bottom-lines in the first quarter, with pretax profit rising 11% on a yearly basis. —Hakyung Kim, CNBC, 30 Apr. 2025

That engagement boosted Revolut’s pretax profit to $1.4 billion, its fourth consecutive year of profitability since the firm was founded in 2015. —Robert Olsen, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025

These contributions were made with pretax dollars, meaning the money went into your retirement account before getting taxed. —Mary Clements Evans, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025

Next, a staple in British retail brands, reported a pretax profit of £1,011 billion ($1.3 billion) in 2024, up 10.1% from the previous year and surpassing the billion pound milestone. —Jenni Reid,chloe Taylor,sawdah Bhaimiya,holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pretax

• attacks
• backpacks
• beeswax
• borax
• callbacks
• carfax
• climax
• cutbacks
• drawbacks
• feedbacks
• flashbacks
• greenbacks

Legal Definition

pretax

adjective

pre·​tax

ˌprē-ˈtaks

: existing or occurring before the assessment or deduction of taxes

pretax income

pretax contributions