usance

C2+ Topic:Money & Finance

US /ˈjuzəns/ UK /ˈjuːzəns/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the time allowed by custom for payment of a foreign bill of exchange

The merchant negotiated a usance of sixty days for the imported goods.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the time allowed by custom... term period interval tenor

Word family

Related forms use usage

Etymology

From Old French usance ('custom, usage'), from user ('to use'), from Vulgar Latin *usare, frequentative of Latin uti ('to use'); a commercial term for the customary period allowed for payment.

usance Old French uti Latin

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# usance

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈjuzəns/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈjuːzəns/

## Meanings
1. the time allowed by custom for payment of a foreign bill of exchange

## Examples
- The merchant negotiated a usance of sixty days for the imported goods.

## Synonyms
- term
- period
- interval
- tenor

## Related Forms
- use
- usage

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: usance
- Root: uti

## Etymology
From Old French usance ('custom, usage'), from user ('to use'), from Vulgar Latin *usare, frequentative of Latin uti ('to use'); a commercial term for the customary period allowed for payment.

## AI Etymology
Usance comes from Old French usance ('custom, usage'), from user ('to use'), from Vulgar Latin *usare, frequentative of Latin uti ('to use'); a commercial term for the customary period allowed for payment. In current use it is a noun meaning "the time allowed by custom for payment of a foreign bill of exchange". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. A frequentative element in the history points to repeated, habitual, or intensified action. The historical chain includes Old French usance and Latin uti. Related English forms include use and usage. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the older form, the route into English, and the present lexical sense.

## Topics
- Money & Finance

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