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lien

1
[ leen, lee-uhn ]
/ lin, ˈli ən /
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noun
Law. the legal claim of one person upon the property of another person to secure the payment of a debt or the satisfaction of an obligation.
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Origin of lien

1
1525–35; <Anglo-French, Old French <Latin ligāmen tie, bandage, equivalent to ligā(re) to tie + -men noun suffix of result

OTHER WORDS FROM lien

lien·a·ble, adjective

Other definitions for lien (2 of 2)

lien2
[ lahy-uhn, -en ]
/ ˈlaɪ ən, -ɛn /

noun Anatomy.
the spleen.

Origin of lien

2
1645–55; <Latin liēnspleen

OTHER WORDS FROM lien

li·e·nal [lahy-een-l, lahy-uh-nl], /laɪˈin l, ˈlaɪ ə nl/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lien in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lien

lien
/ (ˈliːən, liːn) /

noun
law a right to retain possession of another's property pending discharge of a debt

Word Origin for lien

C16: via Old French from Latin ligāmen bond, from ligāre to bind
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 lien

lien
[ (leen, lee-uhn) ]

A claim or right given to a creditor to secure payment of a debt, usually by sale of the debtor's property.

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.
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