amount owed

Meanings

1. 1phrasefixed phrasefinancebusiness

   The total sum of money that a person or organization still has to pay to someone.

   Grammar: Used as a noun phrase: it can follow 'the' and take a plural, as in 'the amounts owed'.

   Patterns

   • the amount owed to someone
   • the amount owed on something
   • pay the amount owed

   Please check the amount owed on your account before the deadline.

   The amount owed to the supplier was paid in two installments.

   Interest is added to the amount owed at the end of each month.

2. 2phrasefixed phrasefinance

   The part of a debt or bill that has not yet been settled.

   Grammar: Often used with verbs like 'reduce', 'settle' or 'clear' when talking about paying off debt.

   Patterns

   • reduce the amount owed
   • settle the amount owed
   • the outstanding amount owed

   The company reduced the amount owed by selling some equipment.

   After the final payment, the amount owed dropped to zero.

Word forms

Common combinations

the amount owed to someone

The amount owed to the bank is now under $2,000.

pay the amount owed

You must pay the amount owed within 30 days.

the outstanding amount owed

The statement shows the outstanding amount owed on the loan.

reduce the amount owed

Extra payments each month reduce the amount owed.

the total amount owed

The total amount owed includes interest and fees.

Synonyms and how they differ

balance due

Very close in meaning, but 'balance due' is the standard term on invoices and bills, while 'amount owed' is more general.

debt

'Debt' names the whole obligation, whereas 'amount owed' focuses on the exact sum of money.

arrears

'Arrears' means money that is late or overdue, so it is narrower than 'amount owed', which may not be late yet.

Opposites

Word family

owe verb

to have to pay money back to someone

owing adjective

still to be paid, as in 'the money owing'

Commonly confused: amount owed or amount owned?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “amount owed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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