Standard Lemma guide

owe

verb · 6 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

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /əʊ/
  • US: ō
  • US: /oʊ/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • homophone: o
  • homophone: O
  • homophone: oh (toe–tow merger)
  • rhymes with -əʊ
  • CMU ARPABET: OW1 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To be under an obligation to give something back to someone or to perform some action for someone.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: ditransitive

Examples

  • We owe it to our children to make our nation a better place to live in the future.
  • I owe Kevin five bucks which he lent to me last week.
  • This time I'll cover for you, but now you owe me a favour.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To have debt; to be in debt.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To have as a cause; used with to.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • The record owes its success to the outstanding guitar solos.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

be in debt

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • She owes me $200
  • I still owe for the car
  • The thesis owes much to his adviser

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: be

Narrower terms: mortgage

5

verb

Meaning 5

be obliged to pay or repay

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Narrower terms: chalk up, run up

6

verb

Meaning 6

be indebted to, in an abstract or intellectual sense

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • This new theory owes much to Einstein's Relativity Theory

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: repose on, rest on, build on, build upon

History

Etymology

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”). See also own, ought. Cognate with Sanskrit ईष्टे (īṣṭe, “to own, possess”).

Across languages

Translations

99 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Belarusian: быць у абавя́зку (bycʹ u abavjázku) — to be under an obligation
  • Belarusian: му́сіць (músicʹ) — to be under an obligation
  • Belarusian: быць паві́нен (bycʹ pavínjen) — to be under an obligation
  • Bulgarian: задължен съм (zadǎlžen sǎm) — to be under an obligation
  • Catalan: deure — to be under an obligation
  • Choctaw: ahe̱ka — to be under an obligation
  • Dutch: schuldig zijn — to be under an obligation
  • Esperanto: ŝuldi — to be under an obligation
  • Finnish: olla velkaa — to be under an obligation
  • French: devoir — to be under an obligation
  • Galician: deber — to be under an obligation
  • German: schulden — to be under an obligation
  • German: schuldig sein — to be under an obligation
  • Gothic: 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌰𐌽 (skulan) — to be under an obligation
  • Greek: χρωστάω (chrostáo) — to be under an obligation
  • Greek: χρωστώ (chrostó) — to be under an obligation
  • Hebrew: חב (khav) — to be under an obligation
  • Hebrew: היה חייב (hayá khayáv) — to be under an obligation
  • Hungarian: tartozik (with -nak/-nek) — to be under an obligation
  • Ido: debar — to be under an obligation
  • Indonesian: tagih — to be under an obligation
  • Irish: bí ar — to be under an obligation
  • Italian: dovere — to be under an obligation
  • Latin: dēbeō — to be under an obligation
  • Occitan: dever — to be under an obligation
  • Old English: sċulan — to be under an obligation
  • Persian: مدیون بودن (madyun budan) — to be under an obligation
  • Persian: بدهکار بودن (bedehkâr budan) — to be under an obligation
  • Polish: być zobowiązany — to be under an obligation
  • Polish: zawdzięczać — to be under an obligation
  • Portuguese: dever — to be under an obligation
  • Romanian: datora — to be under an obligation
  • Russian: быть до́лжным (bytʹ dólžnym) — to be under an obligation
  • Russian: быть обя́занным (bytʹ objázannym) — to be under an obligation
  • Russian: быть в долгу́ (bytʹ v dolgú) — to be under an obligation
  • Slovene: dolgovati — to be under an obligation
  • Spanish: deber — to be under an obligation
  • Spanish: adeudar — to be under an obligation
  • Swedish: vara skyldig — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: ви́нен (výnen) — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: ви́нна (výnna) — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: ви́нні (výnni) — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: бу́ти ви́нним (búty výnnym) — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: му́сити (músyty) — to be under an obligation
  • Ukrainian: пови́нний (povýnnyj) — to be under an obligation
  • Zazaki: deyndarey — to be under an obligation
  • Zyphe: bah — to be under an obligation
  • Belarusian: завінава́ціцца (zavinavácicca) — to be in debt
  • Belarusian: запазы́чыцца (zapazýčycca) — to be in debt
  • Belarusian: быць ў даўгу́ (bycʹ w dawhú) — to be in debt
  • Bulgarian: дължа (dǎlža) — to be in debt
  • Catalan: deure — to be in debt
  • Chinese Cantonese: 欠 (him3) — to be in debt
  • Chinese Mandarin: 欠 (qiàn) — to be in debt
  • Chinese Mandarin: 欠債 /欠债 (qiànzhài) — to be in debt
  • Czech: dlužit — to be in debt
  • Danish: skylde — to be in debt
  • Dutch: schuldig zijn — to be in debt
  • Finnish: olla velkaa — to be in debt
  • Finnish: olla veloissa — to be in debt
  • French: devoir — to be in debt
  • Galician: deber — to be in debt
  • German: schulden — to be in debt
  • German: schuldig sein — to be in debt
  • Gothic: 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌰𐌽 (skulan) — to be in debt
  • Ancient Greek: ὀφείλω (opheílō) — to be in debt
  • Haitian Creole: dwe — to be in debt
  • Hebrew: היה חייב (hayá khayáv) — to be in debt
  • Hungarian: tartozik — to be in debt
  • Irish: bí ar — to be in debt
  • Italian: dovere — to be in debt
  • Italian: essere in debito — to be in debt
  • Japanese: 借りがある (kari ga aru) — to be in debt
  • Japanese: 負う (ou) — to be in debt
  • Korean: 빚지고 있다 (bitjigo itda) — to be in debt
  • Latin: dēbeō — to be in debt
  • Malay: berhutang — to be in debt
  • Norwegian: skylde — to be in debt
  • Occitan: dever — to be in debt
  • Persian: بدهکار بودن (bedehkâr budan) — to be in debt
  • Polish: mieć dług — to be in debt
  • Polish: być winnym — to be in debt
  • Polish: winić — to be in debt
  • Portuguese: dever — to be in debt
  • Romanian: datora — to be in debt
  • Russian: до́лжен (dólžen) — to be in debt
  • Russian: должна́ (dolžná) — to be in debt
  • Russian: должны́ (dolžný) — to be in debt
  • Russian: быть до́лжным (bytʹ dólžnym) — to be in debt
  • Russian: быть в долгу́ (bytʹ v dolgú) — to be in debt
  • Russian: задолжа́ть (zadolžátʹ) — to be in debt
  • Serbo-Croatian: дуго̀вати — to be in debt
  • Serbo-Croatian: dugòvati — to be in debt
  • Slovene: dolgovati — to be in debt
  • Spanish: estar en deuda — to be in debt
  • Spanish: deber — to be in debt
  • Spanish: adeudar — to be in debt
  • Swedish: vara skyldig — to be in debt
  • Turkish: borçlu olmak — to be in debt