usurer
Pronunciation
  • (RP) IPA: /ˈjuːʒəɹə/, /ˈjuːzjəɹə/
  • (America) IPA: /ˈjuːʒəɹəɹ/, /ˈjuːʒɹəɹ/
Noun

usurer (plural usurers)

  1. A person who loans money to others and charges interest, particularly at an illegal, exorbitant, or unfair rate.
    • 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 4:
      Profitless usurer, why dost thou use
      So great a sum of sums, yet canst not live?
    • 1936, Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind, chapter XLIII
      "You can go to the Carpetbag usurers if you want money."
  2. (rare) Specifically, a male usurer.
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