Meaning & use
national debt
The total amount of money that a country's government owes to lenders, both domestic and foreign.
See it in a sentence
Economists debated whether the rising national debt would hurt future generations.
The country's national debt grew rapidly after years of heavy government spending.
A note on using this word
National debt accumulates when a government spends more than it collects in revenue, financing the gap by borrowing.
Words with a similar meaning
public debtgovernment debt
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