Synonyms

owing

American

[oh-ing] / ˈoʊ ɪŋ /

adjective

owed, unpaid, or due for payment.

to pay what is owing.

idioms

owing to, because of; as a result of.

Owing to a mistake in the payroll department, some of us were issued incorrect checks.

owing British

/ ˈəʊɪŋ /

adjective

(postpositive) owed; due
(preposition) because of or on account of

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

unowing adjective

Etymology

Origin of owing

Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; owe, -ing ²

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The factory closed and the company was shut down for good — owing more than £400,000 to 84 employees.

From BBC

“The trade environment remains challenging owing to higher tariffs, a stronger euro and a persistently volatile global policy environment,” Lagarde said.

From The Wall Street Journal

A year ago, Lee was pledging to eliminate the low valuation multiples attached to Korean stocks owing to decades of mistreatment of minority shareholders by the dominant chaebols.

From MarketWatch

Investigators consider the octogenarian a “vulnerable adult” owing to her difficulty walking, pacemaker and a heart condition that required daily medication.

From The Wall Street Journal

Throughout the 1960s, anxiety grew in some circles that this would result in a crisis owing to sustained U.S. trade deficits and America’s role in providing liquidity to Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023