Burn Rate

Etymology

A twentieth-century business coinage using "burn" as a metaphor for consuming cash the way an engine consumes fuel. "Rate" fixes it to a period, typically monthly. The word gained currency in the startup and venture world, where spending faster than you earn is normal and closely watched.

noun phrase · /burn rayt/
The speed at which a company spends its cash reserves, usually measured per month.
What it names
The pace of consumption behind the balance, so a founder feels money leaving, not just sitting.
Example
After the new hires, their burn rate jumped to two hundred thousand a month.
Related idea
Burn rate is the spending speed; runway is how long that speed can last given the cash on hand. Cutting burn rate is the fastest lever to extend runway when raising more money isn’t an option.