credit

noun

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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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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 The Corps, to its credit, responded swiftly, using the incident as a teachable moment to its Marines about the creation and maintenance of positive unit cultures and environments. — Waitman Wade Beorn, The New Republic, "The War-Crimes Presidency," 27 Nov. 2019 The group claims credit for lowering drug prices by curtailing monopolies and ushering generic drugs to market, estimating $2 billion in global savings in the past 12 years on HIV drugs alone. — Lev Facher, STAT, "How a billionaire couple greased the skids for Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing bill," 26 Nov. 2019 His credit has been removed from the film's publicity materials. — Nathan Mattise, Ars Technica, "Apple cancels theatrical premiere of its Oscar hopeful, The Banker," 21 Nov. 2019 Allain’s producing credits include Black Snake Moan, Hustle & Flow, Dear White People the movie, and Netflix’s Dear White People. — Paula Rogo, Essence, "Stephanie Allain To Co-Produce 2020 Academy Awards," 16 Nov. 2019 In September Mubi had appointed producer Guneet Monga, whose credits include Oscar winning short film Period. — Nyay Bhushan, The Hollywood Reporter, "Specialist Streamer Mubi Launches in India, Reveals Pricing," 15 Nov. 2019 Mason's past credits include the role of Nick in Booksmart and Parker Jones in the TV series, Ballers. — Jasmine Gomez, Seventeen, "Meet the Cast of Netflix's "Let It Snow" And All Their Characters," 14 Nov. 2019 Hauer-King’s credits to date include roles in television series like World on Fire and the upcoming Agatha and the Curse of Ishtar, plus in films like Postcards from London and A Dog’s Way Home. — Jen Juneau, PEOPLE.com, "The Live-Action Little Mermaid Movie Has Cast Its Prince Eric — Meet Jonah Hauer-King," 13 Nov. 2019 Black officials there give ironic credit for the change to President Donald Trump and the voter animosity he's engendered. — NBC News, "Black lawmakers in Virginia set to be key powerbrokers," 12 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb However, Schaller credited the hunter with doing the right thing by self-reporting the violations. — Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Deer hunter mistakenly kills two elk in northern Wisconsin," 29 Nov. 2019 Beilein credited the Magic for their stellar performance. — Chris Fedor, cleveland, "John Beilein frustrated with repeated travel calls against Cleveland Cavaliers: 'It’s not fair’," 28 Nov. 2019 Sidonius credited that scandalous relationship for Ovid’s exile, but later historians have debunked this theory. — Esteban Berché, National Geographic, "Did Ovid's erotic poetry lead to his exile from Rome?," 26 Nov. 2019 Whitney credited the energy from the crowd in helping Kentucky to its second-half run. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "Why John Calipari prefers low-major home games to playing in the Maui Invitational," 23 Nov. 2019 Following the game, Bearcats' coach John Brannen credited Sorolla for his defensive ability and providing energy off the bench. — Fletcher Page, Cincinnati.com, "Cincinnati basketball will be without Jay Sorolla for three to four weeks," 22 Nov. 2019 Scorsese credited De Niro with introducing him to DiCaprio after the two actors made This Boy’s Life together in 1993. — Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, "Martin Scorsese Urges Commitment to Art Over Algorithms: "It's All an Illusion"," 15 Nov. 2019 Much of the closed-door testimony credited Giuliani with guiding Ukraine policy to push for investigations. — Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, "5 things to look for as public hearings begin in the House impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump," 14 Nov. 2019 Geddie credited Walters for coming up with the show’s concept after a conversation with her daughter. — Hal Boedeker, orlandosentinel.com, "'View’ grills Donald Trump Jr. for 5,000th show," 6 Nov. 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.

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Last Updated

1 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Credit.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crediting. Accessed 13 December 2019.

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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