bankruptcy
Americannoun
plural
bankruptcies-
the state of being or becoming bankrupt.
-
utter ruin, failure, depletion, or the like.
noun
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If an individual or a corporation declares bankruptcy, a court will appoint an official to make an inventory of the individual's or corporation's assets and to establish a schedule by which creditors can be partially repaid what is owed them.
An individual who is lacking a specific resource or quality is sometimes said to be bankrupt, as in intellectually bankrupt or morally bankrupt.
Other Word Forms
- prebankruptcy noun
Etymology
Origin of bankruptcy
Compare meaning
How does bankruptcy compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Bankruptcy is a state of being bankrupt, or having no money to pay back debts that you owe. When you file for bankruptcy, you are giving up all your possessions and declaring, essentially, that you don't have any money left. During the recession, lots of businesses had to file for bankruptcy or declare by law that they were unable to pay off their debts. The ending of the word bankruptcy is a tricky one. Remember that it ends in tcy.
Vocabulary lists containing bankruptcy
Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - High School
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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.
Spirit has twice filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since—it hopes to finally emerge from it in the summer.
From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026
Last month, dine-in movie theater chain iPic filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and said it planned to pursue a sale .
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026
Earlier this week a man who runs four holiday cottages told BBC Wales he would be "forced into bankruptcy" if he ever retired because of the rules.
From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026
It terminated its work with Viridos in March 2023, according to documents filed as part of the smaller company’s chapter 11 bankruptcy case.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026
Over the course of ten years, they went from wealthy to filing for bankruptcy.
From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
