subprime

American  

[suhb-prahym] / sʌbˈpraɪm /

adjective

1. being of less than top quality.

   a subprime grade of steel.

2. being below a prime rate.

   banks engaging in subprime lending.

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subprime British  

/ ˈsʌbˌpraɪm /

adjective

1. (of a loan) made to a borrower with a poor credit rating, usually at a high rate of interest

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noun

1. a loan made to a borrower with a poor credit rating

Etymology

Origin of subprime

sub- + prime

Example Sentences

History has also taught us that the gods like to dish out nasty surprises every few years: dot-com bubbles, subprime mortgage crises, pandemics, etc.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 16, 2026

Estimates put the average subprime auto-loan payment at $448 a month and a 15.5% interest rate in 2019, when looking at loans in bond deals.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026

Each new alarm like this elicits anxieties and murmurs that souring private credit is about to become the new subprime mortgage crisis.

From Barron's • May 30, 2026

Initially a unit of subprime used-car retailer DriveTime, Carvana started capturing attention with its tall, glass-encased car “vending machines” along highways—structures as useful for marketing as storing cars.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026

All he knew was that, in rapid succession, Goldman created a bunch of multibillion-dollar deals that transferred to AIG the responsibility for all future losses from $20 billion in triple-B-rated subprime mortgage bonds.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis