creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkre-di-tər 

-ˌtȯr

: one to whom a debt is owed

especially : a person to whom money or goods are due

Examples of creditor in a Sentence

She owes thousands of dollars to creditors.

Recent Examples on the Web

After all, creditors aren’t obligated to settle any debts. —Gabriel Rodríguez, Sacbee.com, 28 Mar. 2025

Brooks, according to the suit, has suggested that Robinson had in recent months transferred a number of assets, including Drue’s ownership stake in Winthrop and the family home, out of the trusts and back to the company in order to pay off creditors who included Brooks. —Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 26 Mar. 2025

Paying off multiple creditors every month can be challenging to keep track of. —Dave Murrow, Sacramento Bee, 21 Mar. 2025

Purdue Pharma submitted a new bankruptcy plan to give its creditors more than $7.4 billion in cash—including up to $7 billion in payments from the billionaire Sackler family—to compensate victims of the opioid crisis after the Supreme Court struck down the company’s previous settlement plan. —Alex Knapp, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for creditor

• editor
• predator
• coeditor

Kids Definition

creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkred-ət-ər 

: a person to whom a debt is owed

Legal Definition

creditor

noun

cred·​i·​tor ˈkre-də-tər, -ˌtȯr 

: a person to whom a debt is owed

especially : a person to whom money or goods are due compare debtor, obligor

— general creditor

: a creditor who is not secured by a lien or other security interest

called also unsecured creditor

— judgment creditor

: a creditor who has a money judgment entered against the debtor and may enforce the judgment (as by attachment or writ of execution)

— known creditor

: a creditor whose potential claim is known or should be known by a debtor and who is entitled to notice of a corporate dissolution or of a date at which claims will be barred (as in bankruptcy)

— lien creditor

: a creditor who is secured by a lien (as by attachment)

— secured creditor

: a creditor who has a security interest (as a mortgage)

— unsecured creditor

: general creditor in this entry