Synonyms

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

nonborrowing adjective
preborrowing noun
unborrowing adjective

Etymology

Origin of borrowing

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; 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.

His company grew rapidly, lifted by an economic boom in China that was driven by heavy borrowing.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Yet higher yields put upward pressure on borrowing costs, including 30-year mortgage rates.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

The author is bitter toward the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the public corporation overseeing New York transit, for borrowing from Wall Street, just as the private rail lines did.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

But Georgieva said policymakers shouldn’t be in a rush to raise borrowing costs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

He’d gotten very good at borrowing, much better than I had.

From "The Old Willis Place" by Mary Downing Hahn

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