debenture

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Noun 1.3.1 Derived terms

[edit] English

Wikipedia

[edit] Etymology

Originally debentur, from Latin debentur (“‘there are owing’”), supposedly the first word of such a document in early times.

[edit] Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /dɪˈbɛntjʊə/, /dɪˈbɛntʃə/

[edit] Noun

debenture (plural debentures)

1. A certificate that certifies an amount of money owed to someone; a certificate of indebtedness.
2. (obsolete) A certificate of a loan made to the government; a government bond.
   • 1942, Elliot Paul, The Last Time I Saw Paris, Sickle Moon 2001, p. 72:

     Madame Corre, who made the important decisions after her plodding husband had spent hours on the ledger, sold the family debentures and put the money into Dutch decurities.

3. (finance) A type of bond secured only by the general credit or promise to pay of the issuer, now commonly issued by large, well established corporations with adequate credit ratings.

[edit] Derived terms

• debenture bond
• debenture stock