Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The group’s longtime leader, Carol Schatz, told the City Council at a public hearing that the city was mortgaging its future in a “misguided attempt to buy temporary peace with activists.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2025
The agreement reverses concessions the union agreed to in a series of contracts since 2007, when GM and the former Chrysler were skidding toward bankruptcy, and Ford was mortgaging assets to stay afloat.
From Reuters ● Oct. 26, 2023
The Ford contract would reverse concessions the union agreed to in a series of contracts since 2007, when GM and the former Chrysler were skidding toward bankruptcy, and Ford was mortgaging assets to stay afloat.
From Reuters ● Oct. 26, 2023
Sober-minded Egyptians became increasingly alarmed at the way Ismail was mortgaging Egypt's independence by huge European loans and sucking its life-blood by merciless taxation.
From The New World of Islam by Lothrop Stoddard
Well, anyway, things worked out so well that pretty soon the girl's father was mortgaging his house to pay for the wedding.
From Stories from the Old Attic by Robert A. Harris
