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usury

[ yoo-zhuh-ree ]
/ ˈyu ʒə ri /
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noun, plural u·su·ries.
the lending or practice of lending money at an exorbitant interest.
an exorbitant amount or rate of interest, especially in excess of the legal rate.
Obsolete. interest paid for the use of money.
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Origin of usury

1275–1325; Middle English usurie<Medieval Latin ūsūria (compare Latin ūsūra), equivalent to Latin ūs(us) (see use) + -ūr(a) -ure + -ia-y3

Words nearby usury

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

How to use usury in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for usury

usury
/ (ˈjuːʒərɪ) /

noun plural -ries
the act or practice of loaning money at an exorbitant rate of interest
an exorbitant or unlawfully high amount or rate of interest
obsolete moneylending

Derived forms of usury

usurious (juːˈʒʊərɪəs), adjective

Word Origin for usury

C14: from Medieval Latin ūsūria, from Latin ūsūra usage, from ūsus use
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 usury

usury
[ (yooh-zhuh-ree) ]

The practice of charging more than the legal interest rate.

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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