Debtor

//ˈdɛt.ə// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A person or firm that owes money; one in debt; one who owes a debt.

    "The debtor agreed to repay the loan within six months."

  2. 2
    a person who owes a creditor; someone who has the obligation of paying a debt wordnet
  3. 3
    One who owes another anything, or is under obligation, arising from express agreement, implication of law, or principles of natural justice, to pay money or to fulfill some other obligation; in bankruptcy or similar proceedings, the person who is the subject of the proceeding.

    "As a debtor, he faced constant letters from the bank."

Synonyms

All synonyms
debitordebtfinancinghire purchaseinstallment plantouching

Example

More examples

"A debtor of my debtor is not a debtor of mine."

Etymology

From Middle English dettour, from Old French detour, from Latin debitor, equivalent to debt + -or. Doublet of debitor. Displaced native Old English *sċola.

Related phrases

debtor in possessionzombie debtor

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.