BORROWING

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does borrowing mean? 

• BORROWING (noun)
  The noun BORROWING has 2 senses:

1. the appropriation (of ideas or words etc) from another source

2. obtaining funds from a lender

  Familiarity information: BORROWING used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BORROWING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The appropriation (of ideas or words etc) from another source

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

adoption; borrowing

Context example:

the borrowing of ancient motifs was very apparent

Hypernyms ("borrowing" is a kind of...):

appropriation (a deliberate act of acquisition of something, often without the permission of the owner)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "borrowing"):

naturalisation; naturalization (changing the pronunciation of a borrowed word to agree with the borrowers' phonology)

misappropriation (wrongful borrowing)

crossover (the appropriation of a new style (especially in popular music) by combining elements of different genres in order to appeal to a wider audience)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Obtaining funds from a lender

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("borrowing" is a kind of...):

dealing; dealings; transaction (the act of transacting within or between groups (as carrying on commercial activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "borrowing"):

pawn (borrowing and leaving an article as security for repayment of the loan)

 Context examples 

My dear madam, returned Mr. Micawber, perhaps I cannot better express the conclusion at which Mrs. Micawber, your humble servant, and I may add our children, have jointly and severally arrived, than by borrowing the language of an illustrious poet, to reply that our Boat is on the shore, and our Bark is on the sea.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Don't you think, dear, that as these girls are used to such things, and the best we can do will be nothing new, that some simpler plan would be pleasanter to them, as a change if nothing more, and much better for us than buying or borrowing what we don't need, and attempting a style not in keeping with our circumstances?

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

That these meshes; beginning with alarming and falsified accounts of the estate of which Mr. W. is the receiver, at a period when Mr. W. had launched into imprudent and ill-judged speculations, and may not have had the money, for which he was morally and legally responsible, in hand; going on with pretended borrowings of money at enormous interest, really coming from—HEEP—and by—HEEP—fraudulently obtained or withheld from Mr. W. himself, on pretence of such speculations or otherwise; perpetuated by a miscellaneous catalogue of unscrupulous chicaneries—gradually thickened, until the unhappy Mr. W. could see no world beyond.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)