as in to adopt
to take for one's own use (something originated by another)
borrowed the basic plot from a book of tales, but put her personal stamp on the story
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Recent Examples of borrow
Starting that date, graduate students will be limited to borrowing $20,500 annually (up to a $100,000 lifetime maximum), and professional students will be capped at $50,000 per year (up to $200,000 overall).
—
Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Nov. 2025
Although municipalities in other countries can borrow from their national government—Canada regularly provides localized loans to stimulate housing construction—American cities and towns usually don’t have that luxury.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Nov. 2025
Trump has borrowed liberally (or perhaps more accurately, illiberally) from Orbán’s playbook for autocratic capture, and now Orbán is seeking favors in return.
—Kim Lane Scheppele, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Pappas is chair of the Senate Capital Investment Committee, which reviews borrowing and funding proposals for large public projects.
—Alex Derosier, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for borrow
Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Nov. 2025
Although municipalities in other countries can borrow from their national government—Canada regularly provides localized loans to stimulate housing construction—American cities and towns usually don’t have that luxury.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Nov. 2025
Trump has borrowed liberally (or perhaps more accurately, illiberally) from Orbán’s playbook for autocratic capture, and now Orbán is seeking favors in return.
—Kim Lane Scheppele, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Pappas is chair of the Senate Capital Investment Committee, which reviews borrowing and funding proposals for large public projects.
—Alex Derosier, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for borrow
Recent Examples of Synonyms for borrow
Verb
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The district board is set to adopt its 2025-26 grant award list at its regular meeting Tuesday.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Nov. 2025
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To further enrage Predator purists, Thia and Dek adopt a cuddly little monkey-ish creature as their companion, a CGI bit of whimsy seemingly borrowed from Pixar.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Kendall Jenner is embracing her 30s.—
Janelle Ash,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
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Han isn’t surprised that global firms are now embracing Chinese robotaxis.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Borrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/borrow. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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