debt

noun

(finance) Money that one person or entity owes or is required to pay to another, generally as a result of a loan or other financial transaction.

The state or condition of owing something to another.

An action, state of mind, or object one has an obligation to perform for another, adopt toward another, or give to another.

(law) An action at law to recover a certain specified sum of money alleged to be due

Roots

deberedebt- · Latin · owe

Synonyms for debt

indebtednessn debtorn indebtedadj arrearsn borrowingn arrearagen debitn owingadj financingn nonpaymentn

Synonyms & related words for debt

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of debt — including indebtedness, debtor, indebted, arrears, borrowing, arrearage. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to debt

Explore words related to debt — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include liabilities, owed, loans, repayments, refinance, creditor, owes, deleverage. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for debt

Common synonyms for debt include indebtedness, debtor, indebted, arrears, borrowing, arrearage, debit, owing — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does debt come from?

The word debt breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root debt-, from Latin debere (“owe”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.