Numbers dressed up in fancy suits pretending to be words.
A loan where the lender can come after your other assets if the collateral isn't enough to cover the debt—the financial equivalent of co-signing for your irresponsible cousin. Sleep tight!
The speed at which something happens or the proportional relationship between two values—basically, how fast or how much per unit of measurement. Think of it as the mathematical way to compare apples to oranges (or interest to principal).
The corporate equivalent of 'stuff we couldn't sell or use.' In finance and operations, it's what remains after you've stripped out all the valuable bits—technically still yours, but nobody wants to claim it.
The financial equivalent of calling in a responsible adult when you've made a complete mess of things—a court-appointed receiver takes control of a failing company to salvage whatever value remains for creditors. It's bankruptcy's slightly less dramatic cousin, where someone competent temporarily runs your business while you watch from the sidelines. Usually signals that things have gone very, very wrong.
Short for either 'repurchase agreement' (a fancy overnight loan in finance) or 'repossession' (what happens to your car when payments stop), proving that context is everything. In finance, it's a legitimate short-term borrowing tool where securities serve as collateral; in collections, it's the nightmare scenario involving a tow truck at 3 AM. Tech folks have also hijacked the term for 'repository,' because apparently three definitions weren't confusing enough.
The act of assigning a score, rank, or evaluation to something based on predetermined criteria; the quantification of opinion into a number so we can argue about it online.
Money that someone owes you but hasn't paid yet, living in that optimistic space between "they said they'd pay" and "we're calling the lawyers." It's an asset on paper because theoretically you'll collect it, but in practice it's IOU notes from varying degrees of reliable sources. Also known as "accounts receivable" when accountants want to sound official.
The mythical finish line where you stop working and live off savings, investments, or delusion—whichever runs out first. In finance, it's the reason people pretend to save money in 401(k)s while secretly hoping the market crashes so they inherit someone else's wealth.
The delightful process of getting your money back after you've already spent it, typically involving byzantine expense report systems and a CFO who questions why you needed that airport coffee. It's the corporate promise that 'we'll pay you back'—eventually, maybe, if you have all seventeen required receipts. The business world's version of an IOU that actually gets honored.
The money flowing into a company's or government's coffers from all possible sources—taxation, sales, investments, or whatever creative accounting method they're employing this quarter. The number that makes CFOs smile or weep.
The danger that you won't be able to refinance maturing debt or will only be able to do so at punishing rates. The financial equivalent of your credit card's intro rate expiring at the worst possible moment.
The involuntary repo-man experience of having your property taken back because you failed to pay for it—basically, the lender's way of saying 'thanks for the free use of our asset.' A financial term that makes both creditors and debtors deeply uncomfortable.
Something that can theoretically last forever, like subscriptions that auto-renew until you die or energy sources that won't destroy the planet. In finance, it's contracts or licenses that keep going unless someone remembers to cancel them. In environmental contexts, it's resources like solar and wind that corporations love to brag about in sustainability reports.
The self-control a company claims to have while spending aggressively on growth. In finance, it's the theoretical concept that you might not burn through all your capital in the first year—a concept most startups reject immediately.
The bittersweet act of returning borrowed money, transforming your fleeting financial freedom back into a monthly obligation. It's that chunk of your paycheck that vanishes before you even consider buying groceries, steadily chipping away at debt while interest laughs in the background. The universe's way of reminding you that the expensive education, car, or house you couldn't afford upfront still can't actually be afforded in installments either.
To cordially tell money 'you stay here and don't associate with those other rowdy funds.' A legal barrier ensuring specific funds can only be used for their designated purpose, protecting them from predatory creditors or budget cuts.
Subject to being taxed or assessed for local taxes—basically, the government's way of deciding whether your property owes money. If it's rateable, prepare your wallet.
To make your financial accounts stop lying to each other by adjusting numbers until debits and credits agree. It's accounting's version of couples therapy—painful but necessary.
Profit divided by investment—showing how much money you made relative to what you put in, assuming you're measuring profit honestly.