owe
verb (used with object)
to be under obligation to pay or repay.
were owing
-
past progressiveof owe.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Reaching his quarters, Ödön first awakened his valet and bade him pack his master's trunk and pay whatever accounts were owing.
From The Baron's Sons by M?r J?kai
Their courage was so greatly enervated in this bewitching retirement, that all their after efforts were owing rather to the fame and splendour of their former victories than to their present strength.
From The Ancient History of the Egyptians, Carthaginians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians, Macedonians and Grecians (Vol. 1 of 6) by Charles Rollin
Who can tell how much the firmness and perseverance of the more prominent actors in these struggles were owing to her wise and affectionate counsels?
From Pilgrimage from the Alps to the Tiber Or The Influence of Romanism on Trade, Justice, and Knowledge by James Aitken Wylie
Hermas sees that mere repentance is not enough to meet the backsliding condition in which so many Christians then were, owing to the recoil of inveterate habits of worldliness4 entrenched in society around and within.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 3 "Helmont, Jean" to "Hernosand" by Various
Some portions of glass of this character have been analyzed by me, when I found that these white spots were owing to the presence of a glass containing alumina.
From British Manufacturing Industries Pottery, Glass and Silicates, Furniture and Woodwork. by L. Arnoux
