Link Centre Dictionary

owe

UK/əʊ/ US/oʊ/ common

verb

1.

be obliged to pay or repay

2.

be indebted to, in an abstract or intellectual sense

  • “This new theory owes much to Einstein”
3.

be in debt

  • “She owes me $200”
  • “The thesis owes much to his adviser”

Origin

From Middle English owen, from Old English āgan, from Proto-West Germanic *aigan (“to own”), from Proto-Germanic *aiganą, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₂óyḱe (“to possess, own”), reduplicated stative of *h₂eyḱ- (“to own”).

Phrases

  • how much do I owe you
  • owe it to oneself
  • owe out
  • owe someone one
  • the world owes one a living
  • to what do I owe the pleasure

Related words

Broader terms

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.