creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkre-di-tər 

-ˌtȯr

: one to whom a debt is owed

especially : a person to whom money or goods are due

Examples of creditor in a Sentence

She owes thousands of dollars to creditors.

Recent Examples on the Web

The district attorney’s office said in its release that Measures, who was president of KMR, diverted the money to cover business expenses, creditors and personal expenditures. —Christie D’zurilla, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025

There was a global market crash, and a harrowing drought, though ultimately his first economy minister, Martín Guzmán, reached a restructuring agreement with the IMF (and private creditors). —Agustino Fontevecchia, Forbes.com, 20 Apr. 2025

America emerged from the war as the world’s undisputed creditor. —David McWilliams, Time, 9 Apr. 2025

Debt settlement does have some downsides, including fees, and there’s no guarantee of success; some creditors will refuse to settle the debt. —Kat Tretina, Sacbee.com, 4 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for creditor

• editor
• predator
• coeditor

Kids Definition

creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkred-ət-ər 

: a person to whom a debt is owed

Legal Definition

creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkre-də-tər, -ˌtȯr 

: a person to whom a debt is owed

especially : a person to whom money or goods are due compare debtor, obligor

— general creditor

: a creditor who is not secured by a lien or other security interest

called also unsecured creditor

— judgment creditor

: a creditor who has a money judgment entered against the debtor and may enforce the judgment (as by attachment or writ of execution)

— known creditor

: a creditor whose potential claim is known or should be known by a debtor and who is entitled to notice of a corporate dissolution or of a date at which claims will be barred (as in bankruptcy)

— lien creditor

: a creditor who is secured by a lien (as by attachment)

— secured creditor

: a creditor who has a security interest (as a mortgage)

— unsecured creditor

: general creditor in this entry