borrowed; borrowing; borrows
1
a
: to receive with the implied or expressed intention of returning the same or an equivalent
borrow a book from the library
borrowed a dollar
borrowing a cup of sugar from a neighbor
b
finance
: to borrow (money) with the intention of returning the same plus interest (see interest entry 1 sense 3a)
borrow money from the bank
2
a
: to appropriate for one's own use
borrow a metaphor from Shakespeare
3
mathematics
: to take (one) from a digit of the minuend in arithmetical subtraction in order to add as 10 to the digit holding the next lower place
4
: to adopt into one language from another
The English word "entrepreneur" was borrowed from French.
5
dialect
: lend
Borrow me your pencil.
: to borrow something
borrows heavily from Nietzsche
see also borrow trouble
Examples of borrow in a Sentence
The twins often borrow each other's clothes.
I'm borrowing a friend's car for the weekend.
He borrowed the book from the library.
Will you see if we can borrow a cup of sugar from the neighbors?
She borrowed $20 from me.
The speech was peppered with phrases borrowed from Winston Churchill.
She borrowed the technique from local artisans.
Recent Examples on the Web
As asset prices rise, investors are able to borrow more against their portfolios, through margin loans and other forms of leverage that are often hard to see, effectively creating new money in the system.
—
Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
While on the runway the dress was blue and black with a trompe-l’œil design, Robbie’s look leaned into more Victorian-era flourishes, with a laced strapless bodice and an onyx and scarlet red gradient petal skirt, striking colors which borrowed from other styles in the show.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 29 Jan. 2026
In Naples, Lobotka became a regista, the Italian term for a ‘six’ borrowed from cinema.
—James Horncastle, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
For the past few years, SINAKA—aka Quilpué rapper and singer Matías Muñoz—has borrowed from the sound of 2000s and early-2010s perreo, crafting an infectious, memorable take on the sound that moves forward while looking back.
—Tomás Gauna, Pitchfork, 28 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for borrow
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Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
While on the runway the dress was blue and black with a trompe-l’œil design, Robbie’s look leaned into more Victorian-era flourishes, with a laced strapless bodice and an onyx and scarlet red gradient petal skirt, striking colors which borrowed from other styles in the show.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 29 Jan. 2026
In Naples, Lobotka became a regista, the Italian term for a ‘six’ borrowed from cinema.
—James Horncastle, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
For the past few years, SINAKA—aka Quilpué rapper and singer Matías Muñoz—has borrowed from the sound of 2000s and early-2010s perreo, crafting an infectious, memorable take on the sound that moves forward while looking back.
—Tomás Gauna, Pitchfork, 28 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for borrow
Cite this Entry
“Borrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/borrow. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
borrow
verb
bor·row
ˈbär-ō 
ˈbȯr-
1
: to take or receive something with the promise or intention of returning it
2
: to take for one's own use something begun or thought up by another : adopt
borrow an idea
3
: to take 1 from the digit in a minuend and add it as 10 to the digit in the next lower place
Biographical Definition
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