debt
Americannoun
-
debts
plural
-
something that is owed or that one is bound to pay to or perform for another.
a debt of $50.
- Synonyms:
- due, duty, obligation
-
a liability or obligation to pay or render something.
My debt to her for advice is not to be discharged easily.
-
the condition of being under such an obligation.
His gambling losses put him deeply in debt.
-
Theology. an offense requiring reparation; a sin; a trespass.
noun
-
something that is owed, such as money, goods, or services
-
a debt that has little or no prospect of being paid
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an obligation to pay or perform something; liability
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the state of owing something, esp money, or of being under an obligation (esp in the phrases in debt, in ( someone's ) debt )
-
a temporary failure to maintain the necessary supply of something
sleep debt
oxygen debt
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of debt
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English dette, from Old French, from Latin dēbita (neuter plural, taken in Vulgar Latin as feminine singular), noun use of dēbitus “owed,” past participle of dēbēre “to owe,” contraction of dēhabēre (unrecorded), from dē- de- + habēre “to have”
Explanation
The noun debt refers to an obligation to pay for or do something. If you get arrested for stealing, serving time in jail is the way to repay your debt to society. Debt comes from the Latin word debitum, which means "thing owed." Often, a debt is money that you must repay someone. Debt can also mean the state of owing something — if you borrow twenty dollars from your brother, you are in debt to him until you pay him back. If someone says, "I owe you a debt of gratitude," it means you have done something great and that person intends to do something to "repay" your kindness.
Vocabulary lists containing debt
Material World: Shopping Lingo
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The Great Depression and The New Deal
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Economics
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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:
Average student in England leaves university with £47,700 debt - is a degree worth it?
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas in Houston, the camp listed its debt as more than $10 million.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
Some people yearn for zero debt, so your decision isn’t strictly about the numbers — as compelling as they are — it’s also about your risk tolerance as you enjoy your retirement.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026
Related: ‘Her bank accounts were stripped bare by Medicaid’: My late friend had $20,000 in credit-card debt.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
Cardan is dressed in a suit of Dain’s clothes, stolen from the palace wardrobes and altered by a clever-fingered brownie that owed the Roach a gambling debt.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
And BDC peer New Mountain Finance Corp. sold $477 million in assets, which the firm said would reduce its payment-in-kind holdings, or debts that aren’t delivering cash interest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Probate typically has a minimum amount of time before closing, so creditors have an opportunity to come forward and file claims for outstanding debts before the assets can be distributed to heirs.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Chen said Bo, Panshi and another associate had loaned more than $2 million to the developers of an apartment complex, prompting lawsuits over unpaid debts and control of the property.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
In police interviews, Bush – whose funeral parlour was found in a state of chaos when officers raided it – told how debts had accrued, leaving him unable to pay for cremations.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
One of Washington’s neighbors, Colonel John Lee, had died, and his property was being auctioned to pay off the dead man’s debts.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
