tontine Hear it!

tontine definition

ton·tine (tän′tēn′, tän tēn′)

noun

    1. a fund to which a group of persons contribute, the benefits ultimately accruing to the last survivor or to those surviving after a specified time
    2. the subscribers to such a fund, collectively
    3. the total fund or the share of each subscriber
  2. any annuity or insurance system of this kind

Etymology: Fr < It tontina, after Lorenzo Tonti, Neapolitan banker who introduced the system into France in the 17th c.

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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