indebted
indebted Lexical Profile
indebted Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Owing gratitude or recognition to another person or group for a service, favor, or assistance.
"The author noted in the preface that she was deeply indebted to the archivists who helped locate the rare manuscripts."
Owing money; subject to a financial obligation or liability.
"Heavily indebted households often struggle to cope when interest rates rise unexpectedly."
Word Nuance & Usage
Like 'debt', the 'b' in 'indebted' is silent (/ɪnˈdɛtɪd/). In the sense of feeling grateful, it is almost always used predicatively and followed by the preposition 'to' (e.g., 'We are deeply indebted to you for your help').
• Rhymes for indebted
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Dating to the 14th century, the word was borrowed from Old French 'endetté' ('involved in debt'), the past participle of 'endetter', from 'en-' ('in') and 'dette' ('debt'), ultimately from Latin 'debitum' ('that which is owed'). The silent 'b' was introduced in the 16th century by Renaissance scholars to reflect its Latin root.