A sales fee charged at the time of purchase by some mutual funds. The fee is deducted from the money put up by the investor. (In other words, when you buy shares with a front-end load, a portion of the dollars you pay is not invested.) A mutual fund may offer discounts, called breakpoints, on its front-end load if an investor:

• Wants to make a large purchase.
• Already holds other mutual funds offered by the same fund family, whether individually or combined with a spouse or other qualifying person.
• Commits to regularly purchasing the mutual fund’s shares.

A front-end load lowers the investor’s return by reducing the amount that is initially invested.