usance

See also: Usance

English

Noun

usance (countable and uncountable, plural usances)

1. The length of time permitted for the payment of a bill of exchange.
2. Use.
3. Customary or habitual usage.
4. The interest paid on a borrowed sum, usury.
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):

     He lends out money gratis and brings down
     The rate of usance here with us in Venice.

Translations

length of time permitted for payment

• Finnish: maksuaika (fi)

use — see use

customary or habitual usage

• Finnish: käyttö (fi), tapakäyttö
• Italian: usanza (it)
• Serbo-Croatian: uzanca (sh) f
• Swedish: usans c

interest paid on borrowed sum — see interest

Anagrams

• Cesuna, uncase

French

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

usance f (plural usances)

1. usury
2. (obsolete) usage

Further reading

• “usance”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.