bonds
English meaning: Bonds
Definition
Evidence of a long-term debt, by which the bond issuer (the borrower) is obliged to pay interest when due, and repay the principal at maturity, as specified on the face of the bond certificate. The rights of the holder are specified in the bond indenture, which contains the legal terms and conditions under which the bond was issued. Bonds are available in two forms: registered bonds, and bearer bonds.
Example
“Investors moved their money into safe government bonds during the crisis.”
Another example: “The shared ordeal forged strong bonds between the survivors.”
Usage — When, Where & How
As a plural, 'bonds' has several senses: financial debt securities (finance), chemical links between atoms (chemistry), emotional ties between people ('family bonds'), and physical restraints ('broke his bonds'). Context disambiguates sharply.
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
A variant of 'band', from Old Norse 'band' (something that binds); the financial sense developed in the 16th-17th centuries.
Related Words
- covalent
- peptide
- enzyme
- bonding
- systematic
- atoms
- bond
- securities
- ionic
- molecule
Common Collocations
- government bonds
- chemical bonds
- forge bonds
- family bonds
- bonds of friendship
- issue bonds
Word Forms
bond (n); bonds (pl); bond (v); bonded; bonding
Word Tools
Tools & Calculators
Maturity = 146,932.81 · Interest earned = 46,932.81
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
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Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
- Speakers
- 1.5B