bounce

/baʊns/ verb [I or T]

Definition

› BANKING if a cheque bounces, or a bank bounces it, the bank refuses to pay it because there is not enough money in the account: The bank immediately froze the account and bounced outstanding cheques. Payments of $1 million were coming due, but when investors went to cash the checks, they bounced.

› IT, COMMUNICATIONS if an email that you send bounces or is bounced, it is returned to you because the address is wrong or there is a computer problem: Customers may be annoyed that spam defences bounce their legitimate e-mail. The report they'd asked me to send bounced, because the email address was invalid.

› FINANCE, ECONOMICS to suddenly increase, often after falling to its lowest level: Analysts say that the US economy has bounced.bounce 10%/10p/10 points The Group's shares bounced 20% yesterday as it unveiled its half-year results.

(Definition of bounce verb from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)