arrears

[uh-reerz]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR arrears ON THESAURUS.COM

plural noun

the state of being behind or late, especially in the fulfillment of a duty, promise, obligation, or the like: Many homeowners have fallen into arrears.

Sometimes arrear. something overdue in payment; a debt that remains unpaid: Those countries that have paid their arrears may be granted additional loans.

Idioms

in arrears, behind or late, especially in payment: She was three months in arrears on her mortgage and credit card payments.Also Chiefly Law, in arrear.

Origin of arrears

1300–50; noun use of arrear (adv., now obsolete), Middle English arere behind < Middle French ≪ Latin ad retrō. See ad-, retro-

Related formsar·rear·age, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for arrears

liability, obligation, deficit, deficiency, debit, claim

Examples from the Web for arrears

Historical Examples of arrears

He has a right to claim six years' arrears—that is above L100,000.
Night and Morning, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
So, that just when I might have had all arrears paid up, perhaps, and perhaps—who knows?
The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby
Charles Dickens
He was a clerk in a department store, and his board was generally in arrears.
Cap'n Warren's Wards
Joseph C. Lincoln
The landlord had called that morning for his rent, which was long in arrears.
The Shadow of a Crime
Hall Caine
Can you get all your arrears of penitence done up in six weeks, Sally?
The Dominant Strain
Anna Chapin Ray

British Dictionary definitions for arrears

arrears

noun

Also called: arrearage (əˈrɪərɪdʒ) (sometimes singular) something outstanding or owed

in arrears or in arrear late in paying a debt or meeting an obligation

Word Origin for arrears

C18: from obsolete arrear (adv) behindhand, from Old French arere, from Medieval Latin adretrō, from Latin ad to + retrō backwards

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for arrears

mid-14c., "in times past," from Old French ariere "behind, backward," from Vulgar Latin *ad retro, from Latin ad "to" (see ad-) + retro "behind" (see retro-). Meaning "balance due" dates from early 15c.; phrase in arrears first recorded 1610s, but in arrearages is from late 14c.

Idioms and Phrases with arrears

arrears

see in arrears.