mortgage
Americannoun
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mortgages
plural
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a conveyance of an interest in real property as security for the repayment of money borrowed to buy the property; a lien or claim on property such that the lender can take possession if the loan is not repaid.
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the deed by which such a transaction is effected.
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the rights conferred by such a transaction, or the state of the property conveyed: I own a house under mortgage.
The bank holds a mortgage on his farm.
I own a house under mortgage.
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the total loan obtained or the periodic installment to be paid under such a transaction.
They took out a $500,000 mortgage.
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the obligation to repay such a loan; the debt incurred.
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an advance obligation or pledge, usually involving some risk.
Without good maternity care, some babies will be born with a long-term mortgage on their future health.
verb (used with object)
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mortgages,
present (3rd person singular)
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mortgaged,
past participle, past
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mortgaging
present participle
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to convey or place (real property) under a mortgage.
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to place under advance obligation; to pledge, usually taking on some risk.
to mortgage one's life to the defense of democracy.
noun
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an agreement under which a person borrows money to buy property, esp a house, and the lender may take possession of the property if the borrower fails to repay the money
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the deed effecting such an agreement
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the loan obtained under such an agreement
a mortgage of £48 000
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a regular payment of money borrowed under such an agreement
a mortgage of £247 per month
verb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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submortgagenoun
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overmortgageverb
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remortgageverb (used with object)
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unmortgageverb (used with object)
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mortgageableadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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mortgagesimple
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mortgagessimple
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have mortgagedperfect
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has mortgagedperfect
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am mortgagingprogressive
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are mortgagingprogressive
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is mortgagingprogressive
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have been mortgagingperfect progressive
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has been mortgagingperfect progressive
Past
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mortgagedsimple
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had mortgagedperfect
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was mortgagingprogressive
-
were mortgagingprogressive
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had been mortgagingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mortgage
First recorded in 1350–1400; earlier morgage, Middle English, from Old French mortgage, equivalent to mort “dead” (from Latin mortuus ) + gage “pledge”; see gage 1
Explanation
A mortgage is a loan in which the lender may use your property as payment if you don't pay back the loan. Offer your friend a mortgage for the $20 he wants...with his bike as security. Most people obtain a mortgage when they buy a house. The bank extends the loan because of the guarantee that the house will be the bank’s to sell if the debt isn’t repaid. When you make this deal, you have mortgaged your house — the word mortgage can be used as a noun or a verb.
Vocabulary lists containing mortgage
Richard Nixon's "Checkers" Speech (1952)
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Dwight D. Eisenhower, "The Military-Industrial Complex" (1961)
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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:
Bailey said the central bank has effectively tightened policy relative to expectations, which is reflected in rising U.K. mortgage rates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Gen Z lumps together a 29-year-old nurse with a mortgage and a 14-year-old who still needs a ride to soccer practice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
It requires mortgage lenders that hold insurance proceeds during rebuilding to pay at least 2% annual simple interest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Landlords complain that evicting tenants who stop paying rent can take months, leaving them to cover mortgage payments and other costs, and that changing rules on renting create legal uncertainty.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
In 2005 there would be $625 billion in subprime mortgage loans, $507 billion of which found its way into mortgage bonds.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Home purchases often require all cash, and in countries that do offer mortgages to foreign buyers, be prepared to put up to 50% down and pay higher rates.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
The bank levy currently charges 0.1% on outstanding short-term loans and 0.05% on longer-dated loans, although mortgages are excluded from the calculation.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
Before the crisis, banks often financed auto loans or mortgages.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Housing-finance giant Fannie Mae, which guarantees about one in four mortgages in America, posted a new forecast expecting the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage to average 7.4% in the last three months of this year.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
It provided home mortgages for hundreds of black families, people of dependable but modest means who could not have otherwise bought their own homes.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Not terribly long ago, Cleveland mortgaged its future believing that Watson was its savior.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
To finance “I Am Frankelda,” Roy and Arturo mortgaged two homes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
After poor ticket sales, producers were reported to have mortgaged property to cover debts.
From Barron's ● Dec. 22, 2025
To raise the money for the $100 million-plus production, he mortgaged his seaside Santa Barbara, California, estate.
From Seattle Times ● May 19, 2024
He saw himself as a muckraking gadfly and had mortgaged his brownstone five times to keep The Phoenix going.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
Currently, the charter prohibits the city from mortgaging city-owned property and prevents it from operating purely commercial or industrial businesses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
“Russia would be further mortgaging its future for the sake of military gains,” said Alexander Kolyandr, a director at the consulting firm Eurasia Group.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Mid-cap players are mortgaging chunks of their businesses to get in on the action, too.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2025
Migrants from Africa, Asia and South America are mortgaging their family land, selling their cars or borrowing money from loan sharks to embark on long, often treacherous journeys to reach the United States.
From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2024
Almost immediately, the financial slide began, but was artificially buoyed by extravagant bank loans that Chacko raised by mortgaging the family’s rice fields around the Ayemenem House.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
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