noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of creditor
1400–50; late Middle English creditour < Latin crēditor, equivalent to crēdi- variant stem of crēdere to believe, entrust ( see credit) + -tor -tor
Explanation
If Joe loans you two dollars so you can buy a cup of coffee, Joe is your creditor — you owe him two dollars and a big thank you! If you have a credit card, the bank that issues it to you is your creditor. What they give you is not just a piece of plastic: rather it is a line of credit or a certain amount of money that they have agreed to loan you at fixed terms. Make sure you pay it off every month or you'll become a debtor!
Vocabulary lists containing creditor
Believe It or Not: Cred
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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cred
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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:
The leverage the city has on the pending sale includes its status as a creditor seeking to recoup public funds spent to protect the complex with fencing and deploy police security to prevent vandalism.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 28, 2026
The U.S. government is still investigating the allegations while seeking to be repaid through First Brands’ bankruptcy as a creditor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
In some jurisdictions, a fraud victim — like a defrauded bank — may argue for treatment as a special class of creditor with direct access to trust funds.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 16, 2026
So will the new money for many of China’s debtors in the developing world, where it’s the largest creditor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026
The salesman had told Hale that because he wasn’t Roan’s relative, he could become his beneficiary only if he were his creditor.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
To repay his former employer and his creditors, he emptied his retirement account and sold his house, his car and the cards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
So if you’re a graduate who’s struggling to make your monthly payments on a large student-loan balance, then bankruptcy may not offer as clear a path to financial redemption as directly negotiating with your creditors.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026
The judge, Mr Justice Hildyard, had to decide if the restructuring was fair – whether creditors would be no worse off under than plan than if the retailer were to go into administration.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Bankruptcy Court in Houston with a prepackaged plan backed by 88% of its creditors holding Dish DBS bonds, according to a press release.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
The creditors now hired an attorney named George B. Chamberlin, counsel for Chicago’s Lafayette Collection Agency, who had been pestering Holmes ever since he failed to pay the furnace company for improving his kiln.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
