usurious

adjective

usu·​ri·​ous yu̇-ˈzhu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce usurious (audio) -ˈzu̇r- How to pronounce usurious (audio)
1
: practicing usury
2
: involving usury : of the character of usury
usurious interest rates
usuriously adverb
usuriousness noun

Examples of usurious in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Why, for instance, are telephone fees so usurious for the people in prison who can least afford them, when their friends on the outside can practically call Mars for $20 a month? Neal Rubin, Detroit Free Press, 3 Mar. 2024 An auto lender charged usurious interest rates was forced to pay a fine. Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 29 Jan. 2024 Rates any higher than 10% were considered usurious. Eric Fuller, Forbes, 5 Feb. 2023 Storage prices in particular are positively usurious compared to what high-end PC storage costs. Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 6 Nov. 2023 Passed in Illinois in 2021, the law was given life by legislators concerned that the poorest in Illinois were being charged usurious rates of interest for small-dollar loans. John Tamny, Forbes, 18 Apr. 2023 The government could do something about this by recognizing an effective usurious interest rate and putting a stop to turning people into the fiscal equivalent of the mountains of bodies in cells providing energy for soulless machines in the movie The Matrix. Erik Sherman, Forbes, 30 Apr. 2022 The fees are usurious. Ashish Prashar, CNN, 17 June 2021 A lot of this spending is facilitated by revolving credit that currently commands usurious interest rates. WSJ, 19 June 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'usurious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1610, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of usurious was in 1610

Dictionary Entries Near usurious

Cite this Entry

“Usurious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/usurious. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

usurious

adjective
usu·​ri·​ous yu̇-ˈzhu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce usurious (audio) -ˈzu̇r- How to pronounce usurious (audio)
: practicing, involving, or being usury
usurious interest

Legal Definition

usurious

adjective
usu·​ri·​ous yu̇-ˈzhu̇r-ē-əs How to pronounce usurious (audio)
1
: practicing usury
2
: involving usury
usurious interest
usuriously adverb
usuriousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on usurious

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!