debt

Use debt in a sentence

noun

Debt is defined as owing money, owed money that is past due or the feeling as if you owe someone something.

An example of debt is what you owe on your mortgage and car loan.
An example of debt is a feeling of gratitude when someone helps you to go to college.

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"debt." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 March 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt>.

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debt. (n.d.). Retrieved March 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt

debt

something owed by one person to another or others
an obligation or liability to pay or return something
the condition of owing: to be in debt a thousand dollars
Theol. a sin

Origin of debt

altered (after L) from Middle English and Old French dette from Classical Latin debitum, neuter past participle of debere, to owe from de-, from + habere, to have: see habit

debt Idioms

be in someone's debt

to be indebted, obligated, or beholden to someone

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MLA Style

"debt." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 March 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt>.

APA Style

debt. (n.d.). Retrieved March 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt

debt

noun

Something owed, such as money, goods, or services: used the proceeds to pay off her debts; a debt of gratitude.
An obligation or liability to pay or render something to someone else: students burdened with debt.
The condition of owing: a young family always in debt.
Financial instruments, such as bonds, mortgages, and loans, that represent a claim to payment and rights of creditorship: invested in government debt; a company issuing debt.
A moral or legal obligation to make reparations or undergo punishment for committing an offense: a criminal repaying his debt to society.

Origin of debt

Middle English dette from Old French from Vulgar Latin dēbita pl. of Latin dēbitum debt neuter past participle of dēbēre to owe ; see ghabh- in Indo-European roots.

Related Forms:

debt′less
adjective

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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MLA Style

"debt." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 March 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt>.

APA Style

debt. (n.d.). Retrieved March 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt

Noun

(plural debts)

An action, state of mind, or object one has an obligation to perform for another, adopt toward another, or give to another.
The state or condition of owing something to another.
I am in your debt.
Money that one person or entity owes or is required to pay to another, generally as a result of a loan or other financial transaction.
(law) An action at law to recover a certain specified sum of money alleged to be due.

Origin

From Middle English dett, from Old French dete (French: dette), from Medieval Latin dēbita, from Latin dēbitum (“what is owed, a debt, a duty”), neuter of dēbitus, perfect passive participle of dēbeō (“I owe”), contraction of *dehibeō (“I have from”), from de (“from”) + habeō (“I have”).

The unpronounced "b" in the modern English spelling is a Latinisation from the Latin etymon dēbitum.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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Link to this page

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MLA Style

"debt." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 March 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt>.

APA Style

debt. (n.d.). Retrieved March 16th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Debt

debt - Investment & Finance Definition

An obligation that a person or organization has to another person or organization. Debt may be in the form of a bond, note, mortgage, line of credit, or other financial instrument. Debt may be secured by assets, which means that the assets will be seized in the event of default, or be unsecured.