credit

noun

cred·it | \ ˈkre-dit

Definition of credit

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : reliance on the truth or reality of something gave credit to everything he said Give no credit to idle rumors.

2a : the balance in a person's favor in an account

b : an amount or sum placed at a person's disposal by a bank

c : the provision of money, goods, or services with the expectation of future payment long-term credit also : money, goods, or services so provided They exhausted their credit.

d(1) : an entry on the right-hand side of an account constituting an addition to a revenue, net worth, or liability account

(2) : a deduction from an expense or asset account

e : any one of or the sum of the items entered on the right-hand side of an account

f : a deduction from an amount otherwise due

3a : influence or power derived from enjoying the confidence of another or others

b : good name : esteem also : financial or commercial trustworthiness

4 archaic : credibility

5 : a source of honor a credit to the school

6a : something that gains or adds to reputation or esteem : honor He took no credit for his kindly act.

b : recognition, acknowledgment quite willing to accept undeserved credit

7 : recognition by name of a person contributing to a performance (such as a film or telecast) the opening credits

8a : recognition by a school or college that a student has fulfilled a requirement leading to a degree

b : credit hour earned 15 credits last semester

credit

verb

credited; crediting; credits

Definition of credit (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to trust in the truth of : believe find his story hard to credit

2 : to supply goods on credit to

3 archaic : to bring credit or honor upon

4a : to enter upon the credit side of an account

b : to place an amount to the credit of credit his account with ten dollars

5a : to consider usually favorably as the source, agent, or performer of an action or the possessor of a trait credits him with an excellent sense of humor

b : to attribute to some person They credit the invention to him.

Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about credit

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Synonyms for credit

Synonyms: Noun

trust

Synonyms: Verb

accredit, ascribe, attribute, chalk up, impute, lay, put down

Choose the Right Synonym for credit

Noun

belief, faith, credence, credit mean assent to the truth of something offered for acceptance. belief may or may not imply certitude in the believer. my belief that I had caught all the errors faith almost always implies certitude even where there is no evidence or proof. an unshakable faith in God credence suggests intellectual assent without implying anything about grounds for assent. a theory now given credence by scientists credit may imply assent on grounds other than direct proof. gave full credit to the statement of a reputable witness

influence, authority, prestige, weight, credit mean power exerted over the minds or behavior of others. influence may apply to a force exercised and received consciously or unconsciously. used her influence to get the bill passed authority implies the power of winning devotion or allegiance or of compelling acceptance and belief. his opinions lacked authority prestige implies the ascendancy given by conspicuous excellence or reputation for superiority. the prestige of the newspaper weight implies measurable or decisive influence in determining acts or choices. their wishes obviously carried much weight credit suggests influence that arises from the confidence of others. his credit with the press

Verb

ascribe, attribute, assign, impute, credit mean to lay something to the account of a person or thing. ascribe suggests an inferring or conjecturing of cause, quality, authorship. forged paintings formerly ascribed to masters attribute suggests less tentativeness than ascribe, less definiteness than assign. attributed to Rembrandt but possibly done by an associate assign implies ascribing with certainty or after deliberation. assigned the bones to the Cretaceous period impute suggests ascribing something that brings discredit by way of accusation or blame. tried to impute sinister motives to my actions credit implies ascribing a thing or especially an action to a person or other thing as its agent, source, or explanation. credited his teammates for his success

Examples of credit in a Sentence

Noun

banks that extend credit to the public You need to have a strong credit history and a good job in order to get a mortgage. A credit of $50 was added to your account. All the credit must go to the play's talented director. She's finally getting the credit she deserves. He shared the credit with his parents. You've got to give her credit; she knows what she's doing.

Verb

Your payment of $38.50 has been credited to your account. The bank is crediting your account for the full amount. They credited the rescue to his quick thinking.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

General Motors reportedly believes the California deal doesn’t give manufacturers enough credit for investments in fully electric vehicles. — Aarian Marshall, Ars Technica, "The fight over fuel economy rules is getting messy," 15 Sep. 2019 Warren, who also unveiled her plan to reform Social Security yesterday, generally got good reviews from the pundits, who gave Harris credit for some of the night’s most memorable lines. — Fortune, "Female CEOs Up Their Activism: The Broadsheet," 13 Sep. 2019 Michigan State Give Arizona State credit for beating Michigan State at the Spartans' game. — Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, "Winners and losers from Week 3 in college football are led by Notre Dame and Georgia," 13 Sep. 2019 She was given a 20-year sentenced with five years to serve but was given credit for time served and released from the Etowah County Detention Center on July 23, jail and court records show. — Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, "Charge dismissed against father in infant son’s 2013 blunt force trauma death," 16 Sep. 2019 The offensive line, great execution, Give the players credit for that. — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Lions love Darrell Bevell's aggressive play call to seal win," 15 Sep. 2019 General Motors reportedly believes the California deal doesn’t give manufacturers enough credit for investments in fully electric vehicles. — Aarian Marshall, Ars Technica, "The fight over fuel economy rules is getting messy," 15 Sep. 2019 General Motors reportedly believes the California deal doesn’t give manufacturers enough credit for investments in fully electric vehicles. — Wired, "The Fight Over Fuel-Economy Rules Is Getting Messy," 13 Sep. 2019 Trump has frequently touted criminal justice reform and black unemployment numbers (while also attacking black celebrities for not giving him enough credit). — Meagan Flynn, Washington Post, "‘Their only concern is for whites’: Man who Trump called ‘my African American’ leaves GOP," 13 Sep. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Whitefish Bay's high quality of life was partly credited to its strong job market, the report said. — Hannah Kirby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Whitefish Bay makes top 10 on list of 50 of the best cities to live in the United States, report says," 12 Sep. 2019 Three Broward men were arrested in less than three months, credited to cellphone tracking, DNA and other evidence. — Marc Freeman, sun-sentinel.com, "Slaying of Boca restaurant manager shocked community in 2013. Trials for three men finally near.," 12 Sep. 2019 Barron, a 2002 South San graduate who played at Bethel College in Kansas, credits a lot of Salazar’s success to a relentless work ethic. — David Hinojosa, ExpressNews.com, "Work ethic helped Burbank’s Matthew Salazar become area’s leading rusher," 11 Sep. 2019 Senior operations manager John Ferrari credits much of that to San Francisco’s zero-waste efforts and residents’ familiarity with the blue, green and black bins (for recycling, composting and landfill). — Elena Shao, SFChronicle.com, "San Francisco is surviving the global recycling crisis. But it’s not easy," 9 Sep. 2019 Olson credits his success to making quick identification and adjustments to his swing mechanics. — Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, "‘Stick with me, I’ll get it going, just relax’: On Chris Bassitt’s crucial start for the Athletics," 7 Sep. 2019 Structurally, the script credited to Rachel Tunnard and Rosanne Flynne efficiently deploys every trope in the arsenal of zero-to-hero storytelling, including the revelation that one of the gang, Jess (Gaby French), has an impressive natural talent. — Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Military Wives': Film Review | TIFF 2019," 7 Sep. 2019 Bell credited his explosive start to the play for his sack against Rancho Cucamonga. — Los Angeles Times, "Calabasas defensive end Leshaun Bell has rushed out of the gate to start season," 5 Sep. 2019 Monfils reached a career-high ranking of No. 6 in 2016, and has advanced 20 spots so far this year, from 33rd to 13th, an improvement many have credited to Svitolina. — Ben Rothenberg, New York Times, "Monfils and Svitolina: Taking Strides Together at the U.S. Open," 3 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'credit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for credit

Noun

Middle French, from Old Italian credito, from Latin creditum something entrusted to another, loan, from neuter of creditus, past participle of credere to believe, entrust — more at creed

Verb

partly from credit entry 1; partly from Latin creditus, past participle — see credit entry 1

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Dictionary Entries near credit

Statistics for credit

Last Updated

7 Oct 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for credit

The first known use of credit was in 1529

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More Definitions for credit

credit

noun

Financial Definition of credit

What It Is

Credit is an agreement whereby a financial institution agrees to lend a borrower a maximum amount of money over a given time period. Interest is typically charged on the outstanding balance.

In the accounting world, a credit is also a journal entry reflecting an increase in assets.

How It Works

Credit cards and home equity lines are examples of credit. Your bar tab is another form of credit.

Not all lines of credit are alike. The borrower's creditworthiness and relationship with the lender affect the terms of the lending agreement, as does bank competition, prevailing market conditions and the size of the line in question. Some lenders apply fixed amortization rates to outstanding balances on a line of credit, while some permit interest-only payments for a time, followed by a lump-sum payment of the principal. If the lender has the right to demand repayment at any time, this is called demand credit.

As with any debt, a wide array of specific terms and requirements may apply to a line of credit. It is common in a revolving line of credit, for example, for the lender to charge a company a commitment fee to keep the unborrowed portion of the line available to the borrower. Lenders also may require a compensating balance, liens on the borrower's assets or collateral on a percentage of the line. This is called securing the line. Some lines of credit are unsecured and are thus not backed by specific assets (this often the case with credit cards). Interest rates on unsecured lines are generally higher than secured lines to compensate the lender for the added risk in the event of a default.

Why It Matters

Credit gives borrowers the ability to purchase goods and services (or for companies, credit gives borrowers the ability to invest in projects) that they normally might not be able to afford. By lending the money, creditors make money by charging interest while helping borrowers pursue their projects. However, as many people have learned the hard way, taking on too much debt can cause a lifetime of damage.

Source: Investing Answers

credit

noun

English Language Learners Definition of credit

(Entry 1 of 2)

: money that a bank or business will allow a person to use and then pay back in the future

: a record of how well you have paid your bills in the past

: an amount of money that is added to an account

credit

verb

English Language Learners Definition of credit (Entry 2 of 2)

: to add (an amount of money) to a total

: to add money to (an account)

: to give honor or recognition to (someone or something) for doing something or for making something happen

See the full definition for credit in the English Language Learners Dictionary

credit

noun

cred·it | \ ˈkre-dət

Kids Definition of credit

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : recognition or honor received for some quality or work A doctor was given credit for the discovery. She got extra credit for her report.

2 : the balance in an account in a person's favor

3 : money or goods or services allowed to a person by a bank or business with the expectation of payment later

4 : good reputation especially for honesty : high standing

5 : a source of honor or pride You are a credit to your school.

6 : a unit of schoolwork I took two credits in Spanish.

7 : belief or trust in the truth of something These rumors deserve no credit.

credit

verb

credited; crediting

Kids Definition of credit (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to give recognition or honor to for something The team credited their coach for the championship.

2 : to place something in a person's favor on (a business account) We will credit your account with ten dollars.

3 : believe sense 2 Don't credit a statement from a stranger.

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credit

noun

cred·it

Legal Definition of credit

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : recognition — see also full faith and credit

2a : the balance in an account which may be drawn upon and repaid later — compare loan

b : the use of resources (as money) in the present obtained by the debtor's promise to repay the creditor in the future usually with interest as compensation to the creditor and often secured by a pledge of property or the right to attach the debtor's income in case of a failure to repay — see also consumer credit — compare debt

c : financial reputation to borrow money on the credit of the United States — U.S. Constitution art. I

d : letter of credit

3a : a deduction from an expense or asset account