cost-driver
|cost-dri-ver|
🇺🇸
/ˈkɔstˌdraɪvər/
🇬🇧
/ˈkɒstˌdraɪvə/
factor that causes cost to change
Etymology
'cost-driver' originates from modern business English, formed by combining the noun 'cost' and the agent noun 'driver' (derived from 'drive'), where 'driver' is used figuratively to mean 'a force or factor that causes change'.
'driver' developed from Old English 'drīfan' (to drive), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *drībaną; 'cost' entered English via Old French and Middle English (Old French/Latin roots related to pricing/standing cost), and the compound 'cost-driver' emerged in 20th-century management and accounting language to name factors that 'drive' costs.
Originally, 'driver' referred to 'one who drives' (animals, vehicles). Over time it took on a figurative sense 'force that causes movement or change'; combined with 'cost', it evolved into the technical term 'cost-driver' meaning 'a factor that determines or influences cost.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a specific factor or activity that causes the cost of an operation, product, or service to increase or decrease; used in management accounting to identify sources of cost variation.
Machine downtime is a significant cost-driver in manufacturing operations.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/12/24 06:29