finance
Americannoun
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the management of revenues; the conduct or transaction of money matters generally, especially those affecting the public, as in the fields of banking and investment.
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finances, the monetary resources, as of a government, company, organization, or individual; revenue.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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the system of money, credit, etc, esp with respect to government revenues and expenditures
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funds or the provision of funds
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(plural) funds; financial condition
verb
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(tr) to provide or obtain funds, capital, or credit for
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(intr) to manage or secure financial resources
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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financesimple
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financessimple
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have financedperfect
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has financedperfect
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am financingprogressive
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are financingprogressive
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is financingprogressive
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have been financingperfect progressive
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has been financingperfect progressive
Past
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financedsimple
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had financedperfect
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was financingprogressive
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were financingprogressive
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had been financingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of finance
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English finaunce, from Anglo-French, Middle French finance, from fin(er) “to end, settle, pay” ( see fine 2) + -ance -ance
Explanation
To finance something is to pay for it, like using the money you earn at your part-time job to finance your cell phone bill. As a verb, it carries two very different meanings: "to pay for" or "obtain on credit." So, if you can finance your trip, it means you have the money to pay for it. Anyone who works in finance, meaning the banking and investment industry, will tell you plenty of people get in trouble by letting credit cards finance things like vacations.
Vocabulary lists containing finance
"Women in Aviation," Vocabulary from the informational text
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Richard Nixon's "Checkers" Speech (1952)
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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.
In turn, Cox believes this would make funding that capital investment easier and unlock new ways to finance expansion.
From MarketWatch • Jul. 1, 2026
He was playing exhibition events when a family friend offered to finance a professional comeback.
From BBC • Jul. 1, 2026
Sato is a former university professor and an expert in finance and economics.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 30, 2026
Still, as Richard Hasen explains in Slate, the ruling could’ve been worse—and, by empowering parties over super PACs, might even make our libertine campaign finance system marginally better.
From Slate • Jun. 30, 2026
Exploitation to finance a beach house in Hawaii was one thing.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
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.
