interest rate
Americannoun
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interest rates
plural
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Business. the amount that a lender charges a borrower for taking out a loan, for maintaining a balance on debt, etc.: typically expressed as an annual percentage of the loan balance.
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Banking. the amount earned on a savings, checking, or money market account, or on an investment, such as a certificate of deposit or bond: typically expressed as an annual percentage of the account balance or investment sum.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of interest rate
First recorded in 1885–90
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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.
The central bank raised its key interest rate to 2.25% from 2% in June, responding to a pickup in the annual rate of inflation as the U.S.-Iran war pushed energy prices higher.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
The Fed sets a single, overnight interest rate, which then influences long-term bond yields and mortgage rates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
There’s a way to play more interest rate angst or an Nvidia inspired tech bounce says Evercore ISI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
The first is “what the market believes the average short-term interest rate will be over the next decade,” while the second is the “additional compensation investors require for bearing the uncertainty around that path.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
Chrysler might sell its bonds and simultaneously enter into a ten-year interest rate swap transaction with Morgan Stanley—and just like that, Chrysler and Morgan Stanley were exposed to each other.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
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.
