investment

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)The act of investing, or state of being invested.

   “Giving your children a good education is a wise long-term investment.”

2. (countable, uncountable)A placement of capital in expectation of deriving income or profit from its use or appreciation.

   “An investment in ink, paper, and steel pens.”

   “Hidden behind thickets of acronyms and gorse bushes of detail, a new great game is under way across the globe.[…]The current power play consists of an extraordinary range of countries simultaneously sitting down to negotiate big free trade and investment agreements.”

3. (countable, obsolete, uncountable)A vestment.

   “Whose white investments figure innocence.”

4. (countable, uncountable)The act of surrounding, blocking up, or besieging by an armed force, or the state of being so surrounded.

   “the investment of the fort”

5. (countable, uncountable)A mixture of silica sand and plaster which, by surrounding a wax pattern, creates a negative mold of the form used for casting, among other metals, bronze.