Meaning & use
national debt
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Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
The total money a national government owes to domestic and foreign lenders after years of borrowing.
Grammar: Usually singular with “the”; it names the accumulated stock, not one yearly gap.
Patterns
- reduce the national debt
- the national debt of a country
- national debt as a share of GDP
The national debt climbed sharply during the emergency spending program.
Analysts compare the national debt with GDP to judge whether borrowing looks sustainable.
Common combinations
- rising national debt
- Rising national debt pushed interest payments higher.
- pay down the national debt
- The government promised to pay down the national debt gradually.
- national debt burden
- A heavy national debt burden limits future budgets.
Synonyms and how they differ
- public debt
- Broader: can include borrowing by states, cities, and public bodies, not only the central government.
- sovereign debt
- Used for debt owed by a national government, often emphasizing foreign lenders and default risk.
- government borrowing
- Names the process of taking loans, while national debt is the accumulated total owed.
Opposites
Commonly confused: national debt or deficit?
national debt vs deficit
A deficit is the yearly shortfall; national debt is the pile of past shortfalls still owed.
Practice
Choose the best word: “After several years of deficits, the government’s total ______ finally passed one trillion.”
Choose one answer.
The sentence describes accumulated money owed over years, so “national debt” fits. “Deficit” is only the annual gap; “surplus” and “revenue” point the opposite way.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “national debt”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.