national debt
noun
the financial obligations of a national government resulting from deficit spending.
QUIZZES
TAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL PUNCTUATION!
Commas mark divisions in sentences. Periods end declarative sentences. Apostrophes show possession. Easy, right? Well, punctuation can get pretty tricky—fast. Think you got what it takes to be a punctuation expert? Take our quiz to prove it!
Question 1 of 10
Which of the options below is the best punctuation for the sentence? It__s your turn to pick the movie __ but your sister gets to pick the board game we _ re going to play.
Its your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.
It’s your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game were going to play.
It’s your turn to pick the movie, but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUTAlso called public debt.
Origin of national debt
An Americanism dating back to 1775–85
Words nearby national debt
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for national debt
national debt
noun
the total outstanding borrowings of a nation's central governmentAlso called (esp US): public debt
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 national debt
national debt
The debt of the government; the amount of borrowing by the government to meet expenditures exceeding tax revenues.
notes for national debt
A large national debt can inhibit growth and drive up interest rates.
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.