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bankruptcy

 - 6 dictionary results

bank⋅rupt⋅cy

[bangk-ruhpt-see, -ruhp-see]
–noun, plural -cies.
1. the state of being or becoming bankrupt.
2. utter ruin, failure, depletion, or the like.

Origin:
1690–1700; bankrupt + -cy
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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bank·rupt   (bāngk'rŭpt', -rəpt)   
n.  
  1. Law A debtor that, upon voluntary petition or one invoked by the debtor's creditors, is judged legally insolvent. The debtor's remaining property is then administered for the creditors or is distributed among them.

  2. A person who is totally lacking in a specified resource or quality: an intellectual bankrupt.

adj.  
    1. Having been legally declared financially insolvent.

    2. Financially ruined; impoverished.

    3. Depleted of valuable qualities or characteristics: a morally and ethically bankrupt politician.

    4. Totally depleted; destitute: was bankrupt of new ideas.

    5. Being in a ruined state: a bankrupt foreign policy.

    1. Depleted of valuable qualities or characteristics: a morally and ethically bankrupt politician.

    2. Totally depleted; destitute: was bankrupt of new ideas.

    3. Being in a ruined state: a bankrupt foreign policy.

tr.v.   bank·rupt·ed, bank·rupt·ing, bank·rupts
  1. To cause to become financially bankrupt.

  2. To ruin: an administration that bankrupted its credibility by seeking to manipulate the news.


[French banqueroute, from Italian banca rotta, broken counter (from the practice of breaking the counters of bankrupt bankers) : banca, moneychanger's table; see banco + rotta, past participle of rompere, to break (from Latin rumpere; see reup- in Indo-European roots).]
bank'rupt·cy (-rəpt-sē, -rəp-sē) n., bank·rup'tive adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Cultural Dictionary

bankruptcy

Legally declared insolvency, or inability to pay creditors.

Note: If an individual or a corporation declares bankruptcy, a court will appoint an official to make an inventory of the individual's or corporation's assets and to establish a schedule by which creditors can be partially repaid what is owed them.
Note: An individual who is lacking a specific resource or quality is sometimes said to be bankrupt, as in intellectually bankrupt or morally bankrupt.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Financial Dictionary

Bankruptcy

The state of a person or firm unable to repay debts.

Investopedia Commentary

If the bankrupt entity is a firm, the ownership of the firm's assets is transferred from the stockholders to the bondholders. Shareholders are the last people to get paid if a company goes bankrupt. Secure creditors always get first grabs at the proceeds from liquidation.

Related Links

An Overview Of Corporate Bankruptcy
Z Marks The End

See also: Absolute Priority, Bankruptcy Risk, Bond, Chapter 11, Chapter 7, Discharge in Bankruptcy, Prepackaged Bankruptcy, Senior Security, Stalking Horse Bid, Stockholders Equity, Technical Bankruptcy, Vulture Fund

Investopedia.com. Copyright © 1999-2005 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc.
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Financial Dictionary

bankruptcy

The financial status of a firm that has been legally judged either to have debts that exceed assets or to be unable to pay its bills. Formal bankruptcy may result in reorganization and continued operation of the firm or it may require liquidation and distribution of the proceeds. In either case, most security owners, especially shareholders, are likely to suffer losses. Stock transaction tables indicate that a company is in bankruptcy proceedings by appending vi or q immediately before the name of the stock. See also Chapter 7, Chapter 11, reorganization.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: bank·rupt·cy
Pronunciation: 'ba[ng]-"kr&p-sE
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -cies
1 : the quality or state of a bankrupt bankruptcy>
2 : the administration of an insolvent debtor's property by the court for the benefit of the debtor's creditors bankruptcy> <bankruptcy proceedings> —see also ADEQUATE PROTECTION Bankruptcy Code in the IMPORTANT LAWS section —compare INSOLVENCY, RECEIVERSHIP
NOTE: Bankruptcy protects the debtor from debt collection by creditors. A debtor may file for bankruptcy, which is called “voluntary bankruptcy,” or a creditor may petition the court to declare the debtor bankrupt, which is called “involuntary bankruptcy.” Involuntary bankruptcy is allowed only under chapter 7 or chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. There are four types of relief available to individuals or corporations under the Bankruptcy Code: liquidation (chapter 7), reorganization (chapter 11), debt adjustment for a family farmer (chapter 12), and debt adjustment for an individual with a regular income (chapter 13). Municipalities may file for bankruptcy under chapter 9. Generally, not all debts are repaid in a bankruptcy. The court determines which debts are to be repaid according to their priority, and the debtor is typically granted a discharge from unpaid debts that are dischargeable under the Bankruptcy Code.
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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