Loanholder

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An individual or organization designated to receive funds from a lending party under agreed-upon repayment terms assumes a financial obligation
2. A person or entity that engages in a borrowing agreement and is responsible for returning the borrowed amount, often with added interest
3. A person or organization that has borrowed money and is obligated to repay it according to specified terms constitutes a financial responsibility

Etymology: "Loanholder" is a plain compound: "loan," from Middle English "lone," borrowed from Old Norse "lán" and the verb "lend," joined to "holder," an agent noun from "hold." Put together, the word names whoever holds a loan, the party that has received the money and carries the duty to repay it. The word's meaning follows directly from its parts, with no shift in sense from an older use. Its value lies in its clarity: the term pins down the borrower's side of a lending arrangement in a single word, which is why it turns up in financial and legal writing where the roles of lender and borrower need to be kept distinct.

Synonyms: creditor, lender

Antonyms: debtor