earmark
noun [ C ]
uk/ˈɪəmɑːk/ us LAW, POLITICS US
in the US, a legal request that is added to a law to make sure that an amount of money from the US Congress’s budget is spent on a particular project:
Members of the Party used the 111th Congress to request hundreds of earmarks that added more than $1 billion to the federal budget.
Earmarks often result in the expenditure of large sums of taxpayer money to help a limited number of people.
LAW, POLITICS US
an amount of money from the US Congress’s budget to be spent on a particular project:
A senator obtained an earmark of $1.5 million last year to deal with a beetle that attacks trees, lawns, and crops.
a characteristic or feature that is typical of a person or thing:
He said the plan had all the earmarks of an economic disaster because it would increase customer costs.
earmark
verb [ T ]
uk/ˈɪəmɑːk/ usto keep or plan to use something for a particular purpose:
earmark sth for sth The money had been earmarked for airport improvements.
earmark sth as sth Africa was earmarked as a growth area.
earmark sth to do sth Around 100 stores are earmarked to be sold.