Meaning & use
peppercorn rent
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountableBritishlegal
A very small amount of rent agreed in a lease, often just one pound or one dollar a year.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a peppercorn rent' or 'peppercorn rents'.
Patterns
- at a peppercorn rent
- for a peppercorn rent
- pay a peppercorn rent
The charity leases the old hall at a peppercorn rent.
They pay a peppercorn rent of one pound a year for the land.
The council offered the building to the community for a peppercorn rent.
Word forms
| plural | peppercorn rents |
|---|
Common combinations
- at a peppercorn rent
- The studio is let at a peppercorn rent to young artists.
- for a peppercorn rent
- He sold the lease for a peppercorn rent to keep the club alive.
- pay a peppercorn rent
- The tenants pay a peppercorn rent, so the owner gets almost nothing.
- a peppercorn rent of one pound
- The agreement sets a peppercorn rent of one pound a year.
Synonyms and how they differ
- nominal rent
- The usual American term for the same idea; it sounds more neutral and less legalistic.
- token rent
- Similar meaning, but it stresses that the payment is only a symbol, not a real commercial amount.
Opposites
Word family
- peppercorn noun
- A dried berry used as a spice; the phrase comes from the idea of something tiny.
Commonly confused: peppercorn rent or pepper rent?
peppercorn rent vs pepper rent
This is not a standard phrase. The fixed expression is 'peppercorn rent'.
Practice
The community center occupies the building ______ a peppercorn rent.
Choose one answer.
'At a peppercorn rent' is the fixed pattern for the amount of rent paid. 'On' and 'in' do not fit this legal phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “peppercorn rent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.