mortgage — A legal agreement by which a bank lends money at interest in exchange for taking title of the debtor's property
Part of speech: NOUN
Definition: A legal agreement by which a bank lends money at interest in exchange for taking title of the debtor's property
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈmɔːrɡɪdʒ/
Example Sentences
- After 25 years of payments, Sarah finally burned her mortgage documents in celebration.
- Tom's mortgage is like a vampire - it sucks money from his bank account every month for 30 years.
- The young couple decided to mortgage their future happiness for a dream house they couldn't really afford.
mortgage
NOUN[/ˈmɔːrɡɪdʒ/]
A legal agreement by which a bank lends money at interest in exchange for taking title of the debtor's property
They signed the mortgage papers and finally got the keys to their first home.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
The word originates from Old French, combining 'mort' (death) and 'gage' (pledge or security). In medieval times, the term referred to a conditional pledge of property as security for a loan; if the debt remained unpaid, the property would be forfeited permanently, as though 'dead' to the borrower.
Breakdown
mort- (death, from Latin mors) + -gage (pledge or security, from Germanic wadi). The compound literally means 'death pledge,' reflecting the medieval legal concept that the security interest ends (dies) either when the debt is repaid or when it is forfeited.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“After 25 years of payments, Sarah finally burned her mortgage documents in celebration.”
“Tom's mortgage is like a vampire - it sucks money from his bank account every month for 30 years.”
“The young couple decided to mortgage their future happiness for a dream house they couldn't really afford.”
“Getting a mortgage these days requires so much paperwork, you'd think you were buying the bank itself.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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