bankrupt

== English == === Etymology === Partial calque of Italian bancarotta (literally “a broken bench”), from banca (“bank”, literally “bench”) + rotta (“broken, rupted”), which refers to an out-of-business bank, having its bench physically broken, signifying that the working moneylender was insolvent. === Pronunciation === (UK) IPA(key): /ˈbæŋ.kɹəpt/, /ˈbæŋ.kɹʌpt/ (US) IPA(key): /ˈbæŋk.ɹəpt/, /ˈbæŋk.ɹʌpt/ Rhymes: -æŋkɹəpt, -æŋkɹʌpt Hyphenation: bank‧rupt === Adjective === bankrupt (comparative more bankrupt, superlative most bankrupt) (finance, of a person, company, etc.) In a condition of bankruptcy; unable to pay outstanding debts or meet financial obligations; specifically, having been legally declared insolvent. [from 1565] Synonyms: see Thesaurus:impoverished (figurative) Destitute of, or wholly lacking a good quality, value, etc. one should possess or once possessed. [from 1567] ==== Translations ==== === Verb === bankrupt (third-person singular simple present bankrupts, present participle bankrupting, simple past and past participle bankrupted) (transitive) To force into bankruptcy. (card games) to get placed last in Tycoon with the bankruptcy rule ==== Translations ==== === Noun === bankrupt (plural bankrupts) One who becomes unable to pay his or her debts; an insolvent person; a bankruptee. (UK, law, obsolete) A trader who secretes himself, or does certain other acts tending to defraud his creditors. ==== Translations ==== === Derived terms === === See also === defunct illiquid insolvent === References === Michael Quinion (2004), “Bankrupt”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN. “bankrupt”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. “bankrupt, adj.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.