mortgage

1 of 2

noun

mort·​gage ˈmȯr-gij How to pronounce mortgage (audio)
1
: a conveyance (see conveyance sense 2a) of or lien against property (as for securing a loan) that becomes void upon payment or performance according to stipulated terms
took out a mortgage in order to buy the house
2
a
: the instrument evidencing the mortgage
b
: the state of the property so mortgaged
c
: the interest of the mortgagee in such property

mortgage

2 of 2

verb

mortgaged; mortgaging

transitive verb

1
: to grant or convey by a mortgage
2
: to subject to a claim or obligation : pledge

Examples of mortgage in a Sentence

Noun He will have to take out a mortgage in order to buy the house. They hope to pay off the mortgage on their home soon. Verb She mortgaged her house in order to buy the restaurant. I've mortgaged all my free time this week to the hospice and won't be able to come to the party.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The mortgage delinquency represents the second time in about a year that a real estate loan for the building has landed in default. George Avalos, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2024 My mortgage payoff story: My husband and I paid off the house in the spring of 2023 thanks to making extra payments and taking advantage of a mortgage recast. Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024 Yet Hatzius, like Fed Chair Jerome Powell, doesn’t think empty office buildings will sink the US economy the way toxic mortgages did in 2008. Matt Egan, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024 Almodovar runs the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), which was created during the Great Depression to expand the secondary mortgage market. Will Daniel, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 Americans are bearing the financial burden of higher costs for every type of loan, from mortgages to credit cards, after two years of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2024 Everything from mortgage approvals to business lending portfolios becomes faster, more efficient, and ultimately more profitable. Jon Stojan, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2024 Some homeowners have received multiple such letters from multiple insurers, leaving them scrambling from one policy to the next, as lenders require mortgage holders to carry insurance. Amy Green, WIRED, 16 Mar. 2024 Meanwhile, homeowners who refinanced or bought into pandemic-era ultra-low mortgage rates of 2% or 3% are very reluctant to sell their homes and buy a new one at the prevailing rate of close to 7%: More than 90% of current homeowners have mortgage rates at 6% or below. Bryan Mena, CNN, 8 Mar. 2024
Verb
In the same month that Denver mortgaged huge chunks of its future on Wilson, the desperate Browns made an even bigger bet on Deshaun Watson. Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 And students shouldn’t have to mortgage their futures for a fair shot at middle-class security. Jamie Merisotis, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Baker noted that Spirit recently raised $419 million by mortgaging many of its planes. David Koenig, Fortune, 18 Jan. 2024 He’s mortgaged off his integrity, his moral center. Dana Rose Falcone, Peoplemag, 8 Jan. 2024 Chill factor: Costner has sunk at least $20 million of his own money into these films, including mortgaging 10 acres of his Santa Barbara property. Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 3 Jan. 2024 In 1825, Mason mortgaged the island; eight years later, in 1833, the Bank of the United States foreclosed on the property after Mason was unable to repay his debts. Sue Eisenfeld, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Feb. 2024 Migrants from Africa, Asia and South America are mortgaging their family land, selling their cars or borrowing money from loan sharks to embark on long, often treacherous journeys to reach the United States. Miriam Jordan, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2024 Their bond is so strong, speculation has intensified that a team in the lottery could mortgage its future to acquire both Thompsons. Connor Letourneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 14 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mortgage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English morgage, from Anglo-French mortgage, from mort dead (from Latin mortuus) + gage gage — more at murder

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of mortgage was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near mortgage

Cite this Entry

“Mortgage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mortgage. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

mortgage

1 of 2 noun
mort·​gage ˈmȯr-gij How to pronounce mortgage (audio)
1
: a transfer of rights to a piece of property (as a house) usually in return for a loan and that is canceled when the loan is paid
2
: the document recording such a transfer

mortgage

2 of 2 verb
mortgaged; mortgaging
1
: to transfer rights to a piece of property by a mortgage
2
: to place under an obligation : pledge in advance

Legal Definition

mortgage

1 of 2 noun
mort·​gage ˈmȯr-gij How to pronounce mortgage (audio)
1
a
: a conveyance of title to property that is given to secure an obligation (as a debt) and that is defeated upon payment or performance according to stipulated terms
shows that a deed was intended only as a mortgageW. M. McGovern, Jr. et al.
b
: a lien against property that is granted to secure an obligation (as a debt) and that is extinguished upon payment or performance according to stipulated terms
creditors with valid mortgages against the debtor's propertyJ. H. Williamson
c
: a loan secured by a mortgage
adjustable rate mortgage
: a mortgage having an interest rate which is usually initially lower than that of a mortgage with a fixed rate but which is adjusted periodically according to an index (as the cost of funds to the lender)
balloon mortgage
: a mortgage having the interest paid periodically and the principal paid in one lump sum at the end of the term of the loan
blanket mortgage
: a mortgage of or against all of the property of the mortgagor
chattel mortgage
: a mortgage of or against personal or movable property (as an airplane) compare pledge security interest sense 2 at interest sense 1
collateral mortgage
in the civil law of Louisiana : a mortgage against movable or immovable property that is given to secure a written obligation (as a note) which is pledged as collateral security for a principal obligation see also collateral note at note
construction mortgage
: a mortgage that secures a loan which finances construction
conventional mortgage
in the civil law of Louisiana : a mortgage that is created by a written contract
: a mortgage that is not guaranteed by a government agency
equitable mortgage
: a constructive or implied mortgage : a transaction (as a conveyance) that does not have the form of a mortgage but is given the effect of a mortgage by a court of equity because the parties intended it to be a mortgage
first mortgage
: a mortgage that has priority over all other security interests except those imposed by law
fixed rate mortgage
: a mortgage having an interest rate that stays the same
general mortgage
in the civil law of Louisiana : a blanket mortgage that burdens all present and future property
home equity conversion mortgage
: reverse mortgage in this entry
judicial mortgage
in the civil law of Louisiana : a mortgage lien that secures a judgment debt and is created by filing a judgment with the recorder of mortgages
junior mortgage
: second mortgage in this entry
leasehold mortgage
: a mortgage under which a leasehold interest in property secures a loan or obligation
legal mortgage
in the civil law of Louisiana : a mortgage that secures an obligation which is created by a law and which does not have to be stipulated to by the parties
open-end mortgage
: a mortgage that secures a loan agreement which allows the mortgagor to borrow additional sums usually up to a specified limit
purchase money mortgage
: a mortgage that is given (as to a lender) to secure a loan for all or some of the purchase price of property
also : a mortgage given to a seller of property to secure the unpaid balance of the purchase price
reverse mortgage
: a mortgage that allows elderly homeowners to convert existing equity into available funds provided through a line of credit, a cash advance (as for the purchase of an annuity), or periodic disbursements to be repaid with interest when the home is sold or ceases to be the primary residence, when the borrower dies or some other specified event occurs, or at a fixed maturity date
second mortgage
: a mortgage lien that is subordinate in priority to a first mortgage

called also junior mortgage

senior mortgage
: first mortgage in this entry
special mortgage
: a mortgage on specified property
wrap-around mortgage \ ˈrap-​ə-​ˌrau̇nd-​ \
: a second or later mortgage that incorporates the debt of a previous mortgage with additional debt for another loan
2
a
: an instrument embodying and containing the provisions of a mortgage
executing and recording mortgages
b
: the interest of a mortgagee in mortgaged property
the bank holds the mortgage

mortgage

2 of 2 transitive verb
mortgaged; mortgaging
1
: to grant or convey by a mortgage
mortgaged the property to the bank
2
: to encumber with a mortgage
Etymology

Noun

Anglo-French, from Old French, from mort dead (from Latin mortuus) + gage security

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