ENGLISH
REFERENCE

rent

n. C / U
B1 Intermediate Oxford US //ˈɹɛnt// UK //ɹˈɛnt// rent Archaic General-service Informal

n. the money you pay every month or week to live in a house or use an office that belongs to someone else.

n. a fixed periodic payment made by a tenant to a landlord in exchange for the use of property or land.


SIMPLE

The rent for this apartment is very high.

CONTEXTUAL

Many young professionals in the city spend more than half of their monthly salary on rent and utilities.

COMPLEX

Economists often distinguish between the market rent of a property and the controlled rates set by local government to ensure housing remains affordable for low-income residents.

Synonyms
Etymology 1

From Middle English rent, rente, from Old French rente, from Early Medieval Latin rendita, from Late Latin rendere, from Latin reddere.

Etymology 2

See rend.

Usage

Uncountable when referring to the general concept of payment; countable when referring to specific payments or different price levels.

Pitfall

I pay the rent to my houseI pay the rent for my houseRent takes the preposition 'for' to indicate the property being paid for, not 'to'.

Idioms3 entries

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