See Also: bankrupt(dictionary)
BANKRUPT(law)
bankrupt 1, adjective(dictionary)
bankrupt 2, verb(dictionary)
bankrupt 3, noun(dictionary)

bankrupt (iou)



bankrupt noun, adjective, & verb. Also bankrout. M16.
[Italian banca rotta lit. 'bench (or table) broken', infl. by French banqueroute and assim. to Latin ruptus broken.]
A. noun.
= BANKRUPTCY 1. M16-E18.
An insolvent debtor, a person who is hopelessly in debt; spec. an insolvent person (orig., a trader or merchant) whose estate is administered and distributed for the benefit of all his or her creditors by a court of law. M16.
b. adjective.
Insolvent; undergoing legal process of bankruptcy. M16.
fig. At the end of one's resources; destitute or bereft of (a quality etc.). L16.
C. verb.
verb intrans. Become bankrupt; fail financially. M16-L17.
verb trans. Make bankrupt, reduce to insolvency; fig. exhaust the resources of, beggar. L16.