Meaning & use
refundable security deposit
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountablebusinesslegal
Money a landlord or company holds and returns to you later if you cause no damage or loss.
Grammar: Countable: a refundable security deposit, two refundable security deposits.
Patterns
- pay a refundable security deposit
- a refundable security deposit of $500
- get your refundable security deposit back
We paid a refundable security deposit of $800 when we signed the lease.
The hotel asks for a refundable security deposit, returned at checkout after the room is checked.
Keep the receipt so you can prove you paid the refundable security deposit.
Word forms
| plural | refundable security deposits |
|---|
Common combinations
- pay a refundable security deposit
- Tenants must pay a refundable security deposit before moving in.
- a refundable security deposit of $500
- The ad mentions a refundable security deposit of $500.
- get the deposit back
- You get the deposit back within ten days if nothing is damaged.
- a non-refundable deposit
- Some bookings take a non-refundable deposit instead.
Synonyms and how they differ
- deposit
- Shorter and more general; it may or may not be returned, so add 'refundable' when return matters.
- security deposit
- The same thing in most contexts; 'refundable' simply makes the return promise explicit.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: refundable security deposit or advance payment?
refundable security deposit vs advance payment
An advance payment is money paid early for goods or work; it is not held as protection against damage and is usually not returned.
Practice
The lease says the tenant must pay a ______ deposit, which will be returned after the final inspection.
Choose one answer.
'Refundable' means the money can be paid back, which fits the return after inspection. 'Non-refundable' is the opposite and would mean the tenant never gets it back.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “refundable security deposit”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.