usurer

IPA/ˈjuːʒərə(r)/
IPA/ˈjuːʒərər/

usurer — noun

  • usurersingular
  • usurersplural

1. someone who lets people borrow money and then makes them pay back far too much i

1.nounC2
Definition

someone who lets people borrow money and then makes them pay back far too much in interest

Example

Felix borrowed from a usurer and lost his shop within a year.

borrow from a usurer

The desperate farmer turned to a usurer after three banks refused him.

turn to a usurer when regular lenders refuse

Common collocations
  • borrow from a usurer
  • owe a usurer
  • village usurer
  • ruthless usurer
Synonyms
  • loan shark

    more common and more strongly suggests criminal threats or violence

  • moneylender

    broader and more neutral, because it does not itself imply unfair interest

  • creditor

    much broader, covering any person or organization that is owed money

Grammar Patterns

a usurer

borrow from a usurer

turn to a usurer

Usage Note

This word is formal and often appears in historical, legal, or moral discussion. In everyday modern English, loan shark is more common when the lender is part of criminal activity.

Common Mistakes

The usurer borrowed money from his uncle.
The borrower borrowed money from his uncle.
A usurer is the person who lends money at an unfair cost, not the person who takes the loan.

Word family

  • usury
    nounC2
  • usurious
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Usurer is a formal, often moralizing word for a person who lends money at an unfairly high cost. Loan shark is more common in present-day English and usually suggests criminal pressure or threats, not just extreme interest. Moneylender is broader and can be neutral, because it simply names someone whose business is lending money. Creditor is broader still: it can be a bank, company, or private person that is legally owed money in an ordinary arrangement. Choose usurer when you want to stress greed or exploitation, especially in historical, religious, or literary writing. A novel may describe a village usurer, while modern news reports are more likely to mention a loan shark.

usurer ↗loan sharkmoneylender ↗creditor ↗

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Usurer is built on usury, a word that came into English through French from Latin usura, meaning interest or payment for the use of money. In modern English, the word usually refers not to any lender, but to one whose charges are seen as excessive or morally wrong.

First known use

14th century

14th century, in the meaning defined above