IOU

or I.O.U.


  1. a written acknowledgment of a debt, especially an informal one consisting only of the letters IOU, the sum owed, and the debtor's signature.

Origin of IOU

1
First recorded in 1610–20; representing I owe you

Words Nearby IOU

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use IOU in a sentence

  • The evening previous he had lost a thousand dollars, for which he had given his IOU.

    Jack's Ward | Horatio Alger, Jr.
  • It answers to the Welsh au or iau, and the Breton ou or IOU.

British Dictionary definitions for IOU

IOU

noun
  1. a written promise or reminder to pay a debt

Origin of IOU

1
C17: representing I owe you

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for IOU

IOU

Abbreviation for “I owe you.” An IOU is a written statement of a borrower's obligation to pay a debt.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.