owe

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To have to pay money back to someone.

   They owe me two hundred dollars that I hope to get back soon.

2. 2
   verb

   To feel that you should do something for someone because of what they have done for you.

   We owe it to our children to make the world a better place.

3. 3
   verb

   To have something as a result of someone or something else.

   The song owes its success to the brilliant guitar solos.

From Middle English owen, from Old English āgan, from Proto-West Germanic *aigan (“to own”), from Proto-Germanic *aiganą, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₂óyḱe (“to possess, own”), reduplicated stative of *h₂eyḱ- (“to own”). See also own, ought. Cognate with Sanskrit ईष्टे (īṣṭe, “to own, possess”).

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