loan

loan — noun

1. a fixed sum of money that a financial institution provides to a person or organi

1.nounA2
Definition

a fixed sum of money that a financial institution provides to a person or organization, who must repay it over an agreed period, typically with additional charges (interest) included in the total.

Example

Ramón took out a loan from the credit union to open his own restaurant.

collocation: take out a loan

The Klein family used a student loan to pay for Yael's university fees.

collocation: student loan

Common collocations
  • take out a loan
  • pay off a loan
  • repay a loan
  • apply for a loan
  • student loan
  • bank loan
  • mortgage loan
  • personal loan
  • loan repayment
  • loan agreement
  • interest rate on a loan
Synonyms
  • credit

    broader term — credit can be a spending limit or a loan; not necessarily a single fixed sum

  • advance

    implies receiving money before it is earned or due, often as part of a salary or contract

  • mortgage

    a specific type of loan for buying property, secured against the property itself

Antonyms
  • deposit

    money placed into a bank account, not borrowed from one

Usage Note

This sense requires a determiner ('a loan', 'the loan', 'loans') or quantifier, unlike sense 2 which often appears uncountably in the pattern 'the loan of something'. Common verb partners include 'take out', 'pay off', 'repay', and 'apply for'.

Common Mistakes

I asked the bank for a debt.
I asked the bank for a loan.
A loan is what you request; a debt is what you owe after you receive it.
The interest rate on my borrow is too high.
The interest rate on my loan is too high.
'Borrow' is a verb; the noun you take from a bank is a 'loan'.

2. the situation or arrangement in which one person gives an object or item to anot

2.nounB1
Definition

the situation or arrangement in which one person gives an object or item to another person for a short time, expecting it to be returned afterward.

Example

Kemi asked the librarian for a loan of three reference books over the weekend.

pattern: a loan of [objects]

Amani's neighbour returned the lawnmower after a week-long loan.

Common collocations
  • the loan of something
  • on loan from
  • a loan of books
  • a loan of equipment
Synonyms
  • borrowing

    emphasises receiving rather than giving; 'the borrowing of books' vs 'the loan of books'

  • lending

    emphasises the giver's perspective, whereas 'loan' focuses on the arrangement itself

  • hire

    implies payment for temporary use, while 'loan' usually implies no charge

Usage Note

Often used uncountably in the pattern 'the loan of [something]' (e.g., 'the loan of a bicycle'). Unlike sense 1, this sense does not involve financial institutions or interest payments. Frequently appears in formal or institutional contexts (libraries, museums, equipment hire).

Common Mistakes

I got a loan of my aunt's dress for the party.' (mixing with money sense)
My aunt lent me her dress for the party.
For borrowing personal items, use 'lend' or 'borrow' as verbs rather than 'loan' as a noun.

3. a professional arrangement in which an athlete temporarily plays for a team that

3.nounB2
Definition

a professional arrangement in which an athlete temporarily plays for a team that is not their usual club, while still being under contract with their original team.

Example

The young forward joined the Valencia club on a season-long loan from his German team.

fixed phrase: on loan

Selim scored four goals during his loan spell at the second-division club last season.

collocation: loan spell

Common collocations
  • on loan
  • loan spell
  • loan move
  • loan deal
  • send out on loan
  • join on loan
  • season-long loan
Synonyms
  • secondment

    used in business or government contexts for temporary employee assignments; not used in sports

Usage Note

Almost always appears in the fixed phrases 'on loan', 'loan spell', 'send out on loan', or 'join on loan'. Rarely used outside sports news or commentary. The compound 'loan player' is also common.

Common Mistakes

The player is in loan to another club.
The player is on loan to another club.
The correct preposition is 'on', not 'in'.
He transferred to the other team on loan.' (wrong order)
He joined the other team on loan.
'On loan' describes the temporary arrangement, not a permanent transfer.

4. a term or expression that has been adopted into a language from a different lang

4.nounC1
Definition

a term or expression that has been adopted into a language from a different language, often adapted in spelling or pronunciation to fit the new language's sound system.

Example

The English word 'sushi' is a loan from the Japanese language.

pattern: a loan from [language]

'Boss' started as a Dutch loan before entering English in the seventeenth century.

Common collocations
  • a loan from [language]
  • loan word
  • borrowed from [language]
Synonyms
  • loanword

    the standard one-word compound form, used interchangeably with 'loan' in this sense

  • borrowed word

    more transparent but less common in academic writing

  • calque

    a different phenomenon — word-for-word translation rather than borrowing the word itself (e.g., 'skyscraper' → 'rascacielos')

Usage Note

Often premodified by a language name ('a French loan', 'a Japanese loan'). The compound 'loanword' (one word) is equally common and preferred in linguistics textbooks. The longer form 'borrowed word' is also used.

Common Mistakes

The word 'piano' is a loan word from Italian' (confusing origin with loan status).
The word 'piano' is a loanword from Italian, adopted into English in the 1600s.
'Loanword' (one word) is the standard term in linguistics.

loan — verb

Word family

  • lend
    verbA2
  • borrow
    verbA2
  • lender
    nounB1
  • borrower
    nounB1
  • loanword
    nounC1
  • lending
    nounB1
  • loanable
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While all these terms relate to borrowed money, they differ in key ways. A 'loan' is a fixed sum borrowed at one time with a repayment schedule and agreed interest. 'Credit' is a broader concept — it refers to a spending limit or borrowing capacity rather than a single sum of money (e.g., a credit card has a credit limit, not a loan). A 'mortgage' is a specific type of loan used to buy property, with the property itself serving as security. An 'advance' is money given before it is earned or due, such as a salary advance or cash advance on a credit card. 'Debt' is what you owe after borrowing — it is the result of taking out a loan, not the loan itself. An 'overdraft' is a flexible borrowing facility linked to a bank account that allows you to withdraw more than your balance. For example: 'I took out a loan of $10,000 to buy a car' versus 'I used my credit card to pay, then paid off the debt later.'

credit ↗mortgage ↗advance ↗debt ↗overdraft

Common collocations

Nouns

  • bank loan
  • student loan
  • car loan
  • home loan
  • personal loan
  • mortgage loan

Adverbs

  • generously loaned
  • temporarily loaned
  • interest-free

Phrases

  • on loan
  • take out a loan
  • pay off a loan
  • repay a loan
  • apply for a loan
  • approve a loan
  • loan agreement
  • loan repayment
  • loan shark

Prepositions

  • loan to
  • loan from
  • loan at (an interest rate)

Etymology

Old NorseMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'loan' comes from Old Norse 'lán', meaning 'something lent', which entered Middle English during the Viking settlements in Britain. It is related to Old English 'læn' (to lend) and shares a root with the modern German word 'Lehen' (fief, something granted temporarily). Before the 13th century, English used the word 'lend' for both the verb and noun; 'loan' gradually took over as the noun form, and by the 17th century it also began to be used as a verb in American English.