DEBENTURE
debenture
(noun) a certificate or voucher acknowledging a debt
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
debenture (plural debentures)
A certificate that certifies an amount of money owed to someone; a certificate of indebtedness.
(obsolete) A certificate of a loan made to the government; a government bond.
(finance, US) A type of debt instrument secured only by the general credit or promise to pay of the issuer, not involving any physical assets or collateral, now commonly issued by large, well established corporations with adequate credit ratings.
(finance, UK) A document granting lenders a charge over a borrower’s physical assets, giving them a means to collect a debt, as part of a secured loan.
Source: Wiktionary
De*ben"ture, n. Etym: [L. debentur they are due, fr. debere to owe;
cf. F. debentur. So called because these receipts began with the
words Debentur mihi.]
1. A writing acknowledging a debt; a writing or certificate signed by
a public officer, as evidence of a debt due to some person; the sum
thus due.
2. A customhouse certificate entitling an exporter of imported goods
to a drawback of duties paid on their importation. Burrill.
Note: It is applied in England to deeds of mortgage given by railway
companies for borrowed money; also to municipal and other bonds and
securities for money loaned.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition