overhead
n. C / Un. the regular costs of running a business, like rent and electricity, that you have to pay regardless of how much you sell.
n. the ongoing administrative and operational expenses of a business which cannot be attributed to any specific product or service. Often used in the plural form to describe general business costs.
We need to reduce our monthly overhead to stay profitable.
The company decided to move to a smaller office to lower their overhead and invest more in research.
While the startup's gross margins were impressive, the high administrative overhead eventually drained their venture capital reserves before they could reach a sustainable scale.
From Middle English owerheved, over-hed, over hede (adverb), from Old English oferhēafod (adverb), equivalent to over- + head. Compare German Low German overhoopt, överhoopt, German überhaupt. Piecewise doublet of overchief.
(Sense 1) Abbreviation of overhead projector. : (Sense 2) Back-formation from overhead projector.
Often used in the plural ('overheads') in British English, while American English typically uses the singular 'overhead' as a collective noun.