finance
Americannoun
-
the management of revenues; the conduct or transaction of money matters generally, especially those affecting the public, as in the fields of banking and investment.
-
finances, the monetary resources, as of a government, company, organization, or individual; revenue.
verb (used with object)
-
finances,
present (3rd person singular)
-
financed,
past participle, past
-
financing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
finances,
present (3rd person singular)
-
financed,
past participle, past
-
financing
present participle
noun
-
the system of money, credit, etc, esp with respect to government revenues and expenditures
-
funds or the provision of funds
-
(plural) funds; financial condition
verb
-
(tr) to provide or obtain funds, capital, or credit for
-
(intr) to manage or secure financial resources
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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superfinancenoun
-
prefinanceverb (used with object)
-
self-financeverb (used with object)
-
underfinanceverb (used with object)
-
financeableadjective
-
unfinancedadjective
-
well-financedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
financesimple
-
financessimple
-
have financedperfect
-
has financedperfect
-
am financingprogressive
-
are financingprogressive
-
is financingprogressive
-
have been financingperfect progressive
-
has been financingperfect progressive
Past
-
financedsimple
-
had financedperfect
-
was financingprogressive
-
were financingprogressive
-
had been financingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of finance
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English finaunce, from Anglo-French, Middle French finance, from fin(er) “to end, settle, pay” ( see fine 2) + -ance -ance
Explanation
To finance something is to pay for it, like using the money you earn at your part-time job to finance your cell phone bill. As a verb, it carries two very different meanings: "to pay for" or "obtain on credit." So, if you can finance your trip, it means you have the money to pay for it. Anyone who works in finance, meaning the banking and investment industry, will tell you plenty of people get in trouble by letting credit cards finance things like vacations.
Vocabulary lists containing finance
"Women in Aviation," Vocabulary from the informational text
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Richard Nixon's "Checkers" Speech (1952)
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Economics
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The hack is the latest in a string of high-profile cyber thefts linked to North Korea, which has built a formidable hacking operation, generating funds believed to help finance its weapons program.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
A high-speed railway between Belgrade and Budapest is being built with Chinese finance and know-how.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026
Gaspar called the allegations about creating a hostile working environment and violating campaign finance violations “lies.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026
“I had a great meal, always have a great meal, and I would just tell the Martha’s Vineyard set to give it a try,” the finance tycoon told the press outside the restaurant.
From Slate ● Oct. 31, 2026
They passed a drugstore and a finance company and three banks.
From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt
Felix Salmon, Elizabeth Spiers, and Emily Peck discuss what the S-1 filing revealed about their finances and what this IPO means for Anthropic’s place in the A.I. race.
From Slate ● Oct. 31, 2026
If Carrick does depart, finances will inevitably be a factor.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
However, Borges noted that, as the person in charge of the school’s finances, Segura was responsible for approving the invoices submitted by Bumper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
Quentin Fottrell — The Moneyist — answers MarketWatch readers’ questions about their finances, which are often tied to family conflicts.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 30, 2026
It was his responsibility, he’d say, to handle the family finances.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
Payments could rise sharply for tens of thousands of homeowners who financed with ARMs when rates were historically low.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
The film was financed by A24, which gave Fielder and Oppenheim unusual freedom to pursue the project without any deadline or obligation to turn what they captured into a finished film.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2026
"Investors will reward growth and monetisation, yet they're also becoming more sensitive to how the next leg of investment is financed and what it means for existing shareholders."
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
The board ultimately rejected the offer, with investors questioning how the deal would be financed.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
He financed him for two weeks and at the end of that time Gay was in jail on his wife’s charge and he never did go for turtles.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
It happened in 2001 to the telecom-equipment companies, which ended up writing off billions of dollars in vendor financing when flaky dot-com customers failed to pay.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026
After receiving tepid interest from some large investors, OpenAI has so far secured roughly $11 billion in commitments for the new financing, according to people familiar with the matter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026
Three countries are on the FATF's black list of countries that are high risk for money laundering and terrorism financing: Iran, Myanmar and North Korea.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
This is a highly complicated measure that involves jail financing and seeks to clean up some bureaucratic muddles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
We spent our time, significantly, between the three- block section on Auburn Street where Negro financing and industry controls some eighty million dollars, and the section of the six Negro colleges.
From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
