borrowing

[bor-oh-ing, bawr-]

noun

1. the act of one who borrows.

2. the process by which something, as a word or custom, is adopted or absorbed.

3. the result of such a process; something borrowed, as a foreign word or phrase or a custom.

Other Word Forms

• nonborrowing adjective
• preborrowing noun
• unborrowing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of borrowing¹

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

Example Sentences

Record high stock markets fueled increased trading and borrowing by hedge funds and others to buy even more securities.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Years of high public spending, and a reliance on printing more money and borrowing to cover deficits, had left the country in a cycle of debts and inflation.

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Slow growth could hit household wealth, with a lesser ability of major economies to use government borrowing to support their economies, as occurred in recent crises.

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There is a small but growing possibility that the U.K. economy is heading for recession, thanks in part to overly high borrowing costs, a Bank of England rate-setter said Tuesday.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Financing activity is surging in large part because mergers are on the rise and buyers are relying on borrowing to execute those deals.

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Related Words

• financing