bankruptcy

American  

[bangk-ruhpt-see, -ruhp-see] / ˈbæŋk rʌpt si, -rəp si /

noun

bankruptcies plural

1. the state of being or becoming bankrupt.

2. utter ruin, failure, depletion, or the like.

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bankruptcy British  

/ ˈbæŋkrʌptsɪ, -rəptsɪ /

noun

1. the state, condition, or quality of being or becoming bankrupt

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bankruptcy Cultural  

1. Legally declared insolvency, or inability to pay creditors.

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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

Derived Forms

• prebankruptcy
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bankruptcies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bankruptcy

First recorded in 1690–1700; bankrupt + -cy

Compare meaning

How does bankruptcy compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• insolvency vs. bankruptcy

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bankruptcy bankruptcies

The company filed for bankruptcy in Canada and the U.S. shortly thereafter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

For two years, after losing a landmark defamation case filed by the Sandy Hook families and declaring bankruptcy, Jones has been battling the satirical news site the Onion for control of his website Infowars.

From Slate ● Jul. 12, 2026

On the other hand, if you’re a household facing extreme medical debt, steep credit-card bills or other large unsecured debt balances, then bankruptcy could offer a path to a clean financial slate.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026

Still, many fear that bankruptcy means losing everything.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026

He had filed for bankruptcy, and by 1988 he was back on his feet again, in the oil business, although on a far reduced basis.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger

Two high-profile bankruptcies sparked fears in the market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026

With bankruptcies doubling in the past year, median farm income is trending downward, and roughly 90% of family-owned farms and ranches rely on alternative sources of income to survive.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 27, 2026

After two bankruptcies, and a failed attempt to secure another government bailout, Spirit shut down.

From Barron's ● May 8, 2026

In his book, “Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America,” Ballou examined large leveraged buyouts and found that many of which resulted in bankruptcies.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026

The number of bankruptcies hied with the federal court in Midland went up by 65 percent.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger

Related Words

• default
• disaster
• failure
• insolvency
• liquidation
• loss