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down payment

down payment

70 3.1
A first payment you make when you buy something and pay the rest in later payments
  • noun
  • /ˈdaʊn ˈpeɪmənt/
  • US
translation icon : pago inicial
  • I was supposed to use it for a down payment on a house for my family.
  • require a down payment
  • 20 percent down payment
  • a low down payment

But we spent enough money in there to put a down payment on a boat.

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Examples

  • All right, my parents helped with the down payment, so it wasn't all us.

  • The bank requires a 20% down payment for the mortgage application.

  • But we spent enough money in there to put a down payment on a boat.

  • The worst part about that is that the down payment has to come from their own sources.

  • And I... brought the funds for my down payment.

  • "When my mother died, I used the life insurance money as a down payment on some land.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • I had a down payment on my house and things were really rolling.

  • I made twelve thousand dollars in my second week, and I had a down payment on my house.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • We require a down payment before the patient's name can be placed on the receiver list.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • Those with lower credit scores and smaller down payments will be provided better rates.

Synonyms

deposit
vsdown payment
235 3.3

Money paid in advance to hold or secure something

is specifically the first payment on a credit purchase, not a bank holding or security
down
vsdown payment
  • US
68 3.7

A cash payment made when you buy something, often as a deposit

is the initial payment specifically when credit is used and balance is paid later

How Large

to advance
29 4.6
down payment
  • US
70 3.1
deposit
235 3.3

Surface Forms

down payment singular
down payments plural

Morphology

down + payment

The phrase partly follows a compositional logic: 'payment' is clear and 'down' can suggest a portion paid or reduction (as in 'pay down'), so learners may infer it refers to a payment made at the start. However, the specific financial sense 'initial/advance payment on credit' is somewhat lexicalized and not an obvious meaning of 'down' for a B1 learner without exposure, so full predictability is limited.

Etymology

Down payment comes from the image of putting money down on the table to show you are serious about buying something. So a down payment is the first money you pay 'in advance' to hold a purchase while you pay the rest later.