delinquent
pronunciation
How to pronounce delinquent in British English:
UK [dɪˈlɪŋkwənt]
How to pronounce delinquent in American English:
US [dɪˈlɪŋkwənt,-ˈlɪn-]
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- Noun:
- a young offender
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- Adjective:
- guilty of a minor misdeed
- failing in what duty requires
- persistently bad
- past due; not paid at the scheduled time
Word Origin
- delinquent
- delinquent: see relic
- delinquent (n.)
- late 15c., from Middle French délinquant, from present participle of délinquer (15c.), and directly from Latin delinquentum (nominative delinquens), present participle of delinquere "to fail; be wanting, fall short; offend," from de- "completely" (see de-) + linquere "to leave" (see relinquish). As an adjective, from c. 1600.
Example
- 1. There is even a fledgling market in bonds explicitly backed by delinquent mortgages .
- 2. Both lenders and the overall economy would be better off if more delinquent mortgages were restructured rather than foreclosed .
- 3. A subsidiary of bank of america moved to foreclose on peace 's home in florida , citing delinquent payments on peace 's mortgage .
- 4. New delinquencies are down sharply from 2008 , yet more than $ 150 billion in home loans became delinquent in the fourth quarter of last year .
- 5. There is seldom agreement , but one explanation you are unlikely to hear is that this kind of " delinquent " behaviour is a sensible response to the circumstances of a life constrained by poverty .