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certificate of indebtedness

certificate of indebtedness

8.6
A written paper that shows a person owes money and promises to pay it back
  • noun
  • /sərˈtɪfɪkɪt əv ɪnˈdɛtnəs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : certificado de deuda
  • After signing the contract, he was given a certificate of indebtedness stating the amount owed.

Examples

  • Hamilton insisted that the new government fund all outstanding certificates of indebtedness of the Continental Congress—that is, to issue new six percent bonds of the government. Also, he proposed to take over the debts of the states—about twenty million—and fund them on the same basis.

    Academic text (1993)
  • The bank issued a certificate of indebtedness to confirm the loan taken out by the business.

  • To finalize the agreement, she received a certificate of indebtedness that outlined her repayment plan.

Synonyms

bond
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
564 4.4

A certificate promising to repay borrowed money with interest

is a general debt acknowledgment, not always including interest or fixed dates
indenture
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Formal
10 9.4

A legal contract that sets rules for a bond or for hired work

is a written debt promise rather than a general legal contract of terms
promissory note
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
6 7.0

A written promise to pay money to a named person or holder, payable on demand and sometimes later

is a written acknowledgment of debt with a general promise to repay
debenture
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
2 9.8

A document saying a company will pay back money with interest, usually not secured by property

is a general repayment promise, not specifically a company unsecured obligation
debt instrument
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
1 6.1

A document or digital record, like a bond, that shows someone owes money and when they must pay it back

is a specific written promise rather than a broad category of records
bond certificate
vscertificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
4.9

An official paper that shows a loan to a government or company, with amount, interest, and payback date

records a promise to repay but is less formal about loan specifics

Antonyms

34 2.9

Money you return after you borrowed it

How Binding

bond
  • Specialized
564 4.4
certificate of indebtedness
  • Specialized
8.6
promissory note
  • Specialized
6 7.0
IOU
6 7.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

certificate + of + indebtedness

The meaning is directly compositional: 'certificate' (a formal document) combined with 'of indebtedness' (the state or fact of owing money) yields a document acknowledging a debt. This regular noun + of + noun structure is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English composition, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents should understand it.

Etymology

The noun certificate of indebtedness comes from the simple idea of a paper that says someone 'owes' money: the certificate is the paper and indebtedness is the state of owing. That's why it means a written promise 'to repay' a debt.