u·su·ry

[yoo-zhuh-ree]
noun, plural u·su·ries.
1.
the lending or practice of lending money at an exorbitant interest.
2.
an exorbitant amount or rate of interest, especially in excess of the legal rate.
3.
Obsolete. interest paid for the use of money.

Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English usurie < Medieval Latin ūsūria (compare Latin ūsūra), equivalent to Latin ūs(us) (see use) + -ūr(a) -ure + -ia -y3

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
usury (ˈjuːʒərɪ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n , pl -ries
1.  the act or practice of loaning money at an exorbitant rate of interest
2.  an exorbitant or unlawfully high amount or rate of interest
3.  obsolete moneylending
 
[C14: from Medieval Latin ūsūria, from Latin ūsūra usage, from ūsususe]
 
usurious
 
adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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00:10
Usury is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

usury
c.1300, from M.L. usuria, from L. usura "usury, interest," from usus, from stem of uti (see use). Originally the practice of lending money at interest, later, at excessive rates of interest.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
usury [(yooh-zhuh-ree)]

The practice of charging more than the legal interest rate.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Easton
Bible Dictionary

Usury definition


the sum paid for the use of money, hence interest; not, as in the modern sense, exorbitant interest. The Jews were forbidden to exact usury (Lev. 25:36, 37), only, however, in their dealings with each other (Deut. 23:19, 20). The violation of this law was viewed as a great crime (Ps. 15:5; Prov. 28:8; Jer. 15:10). After the Return, and later, this law was much neglected (Neh. 5:7, 10).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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Example sentences
Usury laws limit the interest rate amount a lender can charge.
The legislature intends to tax the amounts raised by interest rates that exceed the usury rate at a higher tax rate.
They wrongly think usury has no social function or social good.
Venture funding is only available with terms that exceed usury, virtually guaranteeing that the founder will lose everything.
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