sinking fund, sum set apart periodically from the income of a government or a business and allowed to accumulate in order ultimately to pay off a debt. A preferred investment for a sinking fund is the purchase of the government's or firm's bonds that are to be paid off. Usually the fund is administered by a trustee. See amortization amortization (ăm'ərtəzā`shən, əmôr`–), reduction, liquidation, or satisfaction of a debt.
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sinking fund

Fund set aside by a corporation or government agency for the purpose of periodically redeeming bonds, debentures, and preferred stocks. The fund is accumulated from earnings, and payments into the fund may be based on either a fixed percentage of the outstanding debt or a fixed percentage of profits. Sinking funds are administered separately from the corporation's working funds by a trust company or trustee. The purpose of a sinking fund is to assure investors that provision has been made for the repayment of bonds at maturity.

sinking fund [′siŋk·iŋ ‚fənd]

(industrial engineering)

A fund established by periodically depositing funds at compound interest in order to accumulate a given sum at a given future time for some specific purpose.