Meaning & use
bank overdraft
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountablefinance
An arrangement or a debt in which a bank lets you take out more money than your account actually holds.
Grammar: Countable: arrange a bank overdraft, pay off a bank overdraft; often shortened to overdraft.
Patterns
- a bank overdraft of an amount
- go into a bank overdraft
She arranged a bank overdraft to cover her rent until payday.
His bank overdraft grew every month because of unplanned spending.
A bank overdraft is cheaper if you agree it in advance.
nouncountablefinance
The amount of money a person owes because they have taken more from their account than it contained.
Grammar: Often followed by an amount: a bank overdraft of two hundred dollars.
Patterns
- clear a bank overdraft
He worked extra shifts to clear his bank overdraft.
The student's bank overdraft stood at three hundred pounds.
Interest on a bank overdraft can add up quickly.
Word forms
| plural | bank overdrafts |
|---|
Common combinations
- arrange a bank overdraft
- Arrange a bank overdraft before you go over your balance.
- pay off a bank overdraft
- She used her bonus to pay off her bank overdraft.
- unarranged bank overdraft
- An unarranged bank overdraft usually has high fees.
- in a bank overdraft
- He has been in a bank overdraft since March.
- extend a bank overdraft
- The bank agreed to extend the bank overdraft for a month.
Synonyms and how they differ
- overdraft
- Overdraft is the usual shorter form, with exactly the same meaning in most contexts.
- credit line
- A credit line is a general borrowing limit, whereas a bank overdraft is attached directly to a current account.
- loan
- A loan is a fixed sum borrowed over a set period, but an overdraft can be used or not as needed.
- debt
- Debt covers any money owed, while a bank overdraft is a specific kind linked to an account.
Opposites
Word family
- overdraw verb
- to take out more money than an account holds
- overdrawn adjective
- having taken out more money than is in the account
- overdraft noun
- the amount or arrangement by which an account is overdrawn
- draft noun
- a written order for payment
Commonly confused: bank overdraft or bank loan?
bank overdraft vs bank loan
A bank loan gives you a fixed amount to pay back over time, while an overdraft only allows you to spend beyond your balance as needed.
Practice
Which situation describes a bank overdraft?
Choose one answer.
A bank overdraft happens when you take out more than the account holds. Saving or earning interest is the opposite situation.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bank overdraft”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.