plural clawbacks
: the act or an instance of getting back money or benefits previously given out: such as
a
: the recovery of tax allowances by additional taxation
Next year sees the resumption of a 3% clawback that penalizes most upper-bracket taxpayers.—
William Baldwin
William Baldwin
b
: the reclaiming of money or benefits under special circumstances stipulated in a contract
—usually used before another noun
He suggested a clawback provision that would allow companies to demand the return of compensation tied to performance if it turned out that a company's stock performance was inflated by bad business practices or malfeasance.—Loren Steffy
Loren SteffyCriticism of the large bonuses awarded during federally funded bailouts spurred many banks to adopt clawback measures.—Joann S. Lublin et al.
Joann S. Lublin et al.
clawed back; clawing back; claws back
1
: to get back (something) usually by strenuous effort or forceful means : regain
… the street is becoming a high-profile example of how Iraqi National Guard troops … can claw back territory from insurgents.—Scott Peterson
Scott PetersonUnion activists have been knocking on members' doors, standing at the gates of steel mills and generally trying to claw back votes from 2016 …—Trip Gabriel
Trip Gabriel2
: to recover (money or benefits) especially by putting into effect additional taxation or clawback provisions
If finance ministers do approve exceptional increases for farm spending, the extra will have to be clawed back in the next two years.—The Economist
The EconomistBut unbeknownst to you, the drug actually cost only $7, and the pharmacy benefits manager claws back the extra $3.—Sydney Lupkin
Sydney LupkinExamples of clawback in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Gene Maddaus, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
Republicans have derided the efforts as an abuse of executive authority, and some have even argued for clawbacks of some of that relief -- though that's considered unlikely.
—Cheyenne Haslett, ABC News, 12 Feb. 2025
Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 14 Feb. 2025
So did the construction of enormous downtown parking garages and lots that happened in cities in the 1970s as their leaders attempted to claw back shoppers from the suburbs and the malls.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clawback
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Noun
That process provided a venue for creditors to seek clawback of funds that were allegedly misappropriated.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
Republicans have derided the efforts as an abuse of executive authority, and some have even argued for clawbacks of some of that relief -- though that's considered unlikely.
—Cheyenne Haslett, ABC News, 12 Feb. 2025
Verb
The state retirement system is unable to claw back any of the pension money Madigan has already received, Blair said.
—Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 14 Feb. 2025
So did the construction of enormous downtown parking garages and lots that happened in cities in the 1970s as their leaders attempted to claw back shoppers from the suburbs and the malls.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clawback
Cite this Entry
“Clawback.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clawback. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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