pay down

verb

paid down; paying down; pays down

transitive verb

: to reduce (a debt) by repaying in part

Examples of pay down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Focus on paying down credit card and high-interest debt and boosting your emergency savings so that you won’t be forced to dip into retirement savings for unexpected expenses. Sharon Epperson, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2024 Most investors have both short- and long-term goals that can range from paying down debt and saving for a house to creating a college savings plan or taking a weekend getaway. Letitia Berbaum, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2024 But with the volatility adjustment projected to capture $1.2 billion in unstable revenue, some legislators and other advocates for programs say Connecticut could use some of that to meet service needs and have big dollars left over to pay down debt. Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 1 Aug. 2024 In the company’s June 25 town hall, leadership said bankers had been hired to sell off assets in order to help the company pay down debt and strengthen the company’s balance sheet. Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for pay down 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pay down.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1975, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pay down was in 1975

Dictionary Entries Near pay down

Cite this Entry

“Pay down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pay%20down. Accessed 11 Sep. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on pay down

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!