The B in Debt Was Never Pronounced
A debt is money owed. The silent B was inserted by scholars centuries after the word entered English.
A debt is something owed, especially money. The B is a deliberate scholarly insertion. English took the word from French as *dette* and spelled it that way for centuries; Renaissance scholars, admiring Latin *debitum*, added a B to display the ancestry. Nobody ever pronounced it. The same vanity gave *doubt* its B, from Latin *dubitare*, and *island* its S, borrowed wrongly from the unrelated *isle*.
- Money owed. *Pay off the debt.*
- An obligation. *A debt of gratitude.*
- Debtor — one who owes. *A debtor.*
- In debt — owing money. *In debt.*
- Latin — *debitum*, owed. *The root.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | debt | A debt. |
| Plural | debts | Debts. |
| Agent | debtor | A debtor. |
| Opposite | credit | Credit. |
| Latin | debitum | Something owed. |
- He cleared the debt in a year.Money.
- A debt of gratitude.Obligation.
- The B was added by scholars.Spelling.
Letters added for show
- Debt — B added from Latin *debitum*
- Doubt — B added from *dubitare*
- Receipt — P added from *recepta*
- Island — S borrowed from the unrelated *isle*
- Scissors — C added from a mistaken Latin link
Old French *dette*, from Latin *debitum*, something owed, from *debere*, to owe.
Why does debt have a silent B?
Renaissance scholars added it to show the word's descent from Latin debitum. It was never pronounced in English.
Which other words got letters added?
Doubt, receipt, island and scissors all gained letters that were never spoken, for the same scholarly reasons.