borrowing

American

[bor-oh-ing, bawr-] / ˈbɒr oʊ ɪŋ, ˈbɔr- /

noun

the act of one who borrows.
the process by which something, as a word or custom, is adopted or absorbed.
the result of such a process; something borrowed, as a foreign word or phrase or a custom.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

borrowings

plural

Etymology

Origin of borrowing

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at borrow, -ing ¹

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:

borrowing borrowings

Tuchel and his assistant coach, Anthony Barry, have spoken about borrowing ideas from the current version of the Premier League.

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

Real estate giants such as Evergrande, Country Garden and Vanke have also been plagued by debt struggles since 2020, when authorities narrowed access to credit in a bid to curb excessive borrowing and speculation.

From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026

Some top officials such as Fed governor Chris Waller say the central bank might even need to raise borrowing costs unless prices start to slow more rapidly.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

A fairly narrow gap makes sense if corporate-earnings growth is going to be strong for a long period and if borrowing remains relatively restrained.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

Its business was credit cards, not home loans, but it dealt with the same socioeconomic class of people whose home loan borrowing would end in catastrophe just a few years later.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Among the red flags that Di Mattia is tracking are the stock-market performances of companies whose borrowings are tied to AI hopes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

The club also confirmed borrowings on a revolving credit facility on 31 March were £262.5m.

From BBC ● May 27, 2026

Excessive borrowings have long been central to financial crises.

From MarketWatch ● May 20, 2026

It recently announced its borrowings fell 33% to 285.0 million ringgit as at mid-April from 425.4 million ringgit as at end-2025, the analyst notes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026

Scholars have long acknowledged such borrowings as moccasins, maize, and military tactics—the Indian-style guerrilla skirmishes with which the rebellious colonists bedeviled British soldiers.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023