Phrase guide

earnest money

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Money paid as a deposit to show intent to buy or to reserve an item to be purchased; especially, money accompanying an offer to buy real estate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: US, countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

money given by a buyer to a seller to bind a contract

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: arles

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: earnest

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

13 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: عربون (ʕarbūn) — money paid
  • Bulgarian: капаро (kaparo) — money paid
  • Chinese Mandarin: 保證金 /保证金 (bǎozhèngjīn) — money paid
  • Chinese Mandarin: 定金 (dìngjīn) — money paid
  • Finnish: käsiraha — money paid
  • French: arrhes — money paid
  • German: Anzahlung — money paid
  • Hungarian: foglaló — money paid
  • Latin: arrabō — money paid
  • Portuguese: sinal — money paid
  • Spanish: señal — money paid
  • Spanish: seña — money paid
  • Swedish: insats — money paid