debtor

noun

debt·​or ˈde-tər 

1

: one guilty of neglect or violation of duty

2

: one who owes a debt

Examples of debtor in a Sentence

The debtor agrees to pay the debt over a three-year period.

Recent Examples on the Web

The friend stored the documents in their attic, but the debtor died before retrieving them. —Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 July 2025

This basically means that the debt can never be discharged which puts the debtor into a really miserable position. —Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025

In October 2019, New York Helicopter Charter filed in Manhattan federal court for the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding, which, in an effort for the business to become viable, can allow debtors to organize their financial affairs while continuing to operate. —Patrick McGeehan, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025

The key lesson, however, is that as an international debtor, even with a large market and having the world’s reserve currency, like the U.S., is vulnerable to actions by its creditors. —Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 8 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for debtor

• better
• bettor
• fetter
• getter
• letter
• netter
• petar
• petter
• rhetor
• setter
• sweater
• tetter

Kids Definition

debtor

noun

debt·​or ˈdet-ər 

1

: sinner

2

: one that owes a debt

Legal Definition

debtor

noun

debt·​or

: a person who owes a debt see also bankrupt compare creditor, obligee, obligor

Note: The Bankruptcy Act of 1978 calls the person concerned in a bankruptcy case the “debtor” as opposed to the “bankrupt.”