amortize

American  

[am-er-tahyz, uh-mawr-tahyz] / ˈæm ərˌtaɪz, əˈmɔr taɪz /

especially British, amortise

verb (used with object)

amortizes, present (3rd person singular) amortized, past participle, past amortizing present participle

1. Finance.

   1. to liquidate or extinguish (a mortgage, debt, or other obligation), especially by periodic payments to the creditor or to a sinking fund.

   2. to write off a cost of (an asset) gradually.

2. Old English Law. to convey to a corporation or church group; alienate in mortmain.

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amortize British  

/ əˈmɔːtaɪz /

verb

1. finance to liquidate (a debt, mortgage, etc) by instalment payments or by periodic transfers to a sinking fund

2. to write off (a wasting asset) by annual transfers to a sinking fund

3. property law (formerly) to transfer (lands, etc) in mortmain

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• amortizable
  adjective
• nonamortizable
  adjective
• unamortized
  adjective

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has amortized
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have amortized
  perfect
• are amortizing
  progressive
• have been amortizing
  perfect progressive
• is amortizing
  progressive 3rd person singular
• has been amortizing
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• amortizes
  singular 3rd person
• am amortizing
  progressive 1st person singular
• amortizing
  participle

Past

• had amortized
  perfect
• were amortizing
  progressive plural
• had been amortizing
  perfect progressive
• was amortizing
  progressive singular
• amortized
  simple
• amortized
  participle

Future

• will amortize
  simple
• will have amortized
  perfect
• will have been amortizing
  perfect progressive
• will be amortizing
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of amortize

1375–1425; Middle English amortisen < Anglo-French, Old French amortiss-, long stem of amortir literally, to kill, die < Vulgar Latin *a ( d ) mortīre (derivative of Latin mors, stem mort- death, with ad- ad- ); -ize later replacing -is ( s )-, probably by association with Anglo-Latin a ( d ) mortizāre

Explanation

To amortize is to gradually pay off a debt. A bank will help you amortize a loan so that you can make a monthly payment until you've paid back the entire amount. A simple way to understand the verb amortize is "make monthly payments on a debt." More specifically, to amortize is to pay down the total amount of the loan a little bit at a time, rather than only covering fees or interest on top of the loan amount. Someone whose bank amortizes their car loan makes a payment each month, gradually reducing the total amount they owe. Amortize stems from a Vulgar Latin word meaning "extinguish."