贷款

• Pinyin: dài kuǎn
• Hanzi breakdown: 贷 = 代 (substitute) + 贝 (shell/money); 款 = 士 + 欠 (owe)

Meaning

Loan; to take out a loan. Money borrowed from a bank or financial institution that must be repaid with interest.

Can function as both noun (the loan itself) and verb (to borrow money). Common types include 房贷 (mortgage), 车贷 (car loan), and 学生贷款 (student loan). In business contexts, also refers to bank lending activities.

Examples

1. 他向银行申请了一笔贷款，准备用来创业。 He applied for a loan from the bank, planning to use it to start a business.
2. 现在房价太高了，大多数年轻人买房都需要贷款。 Housing prices are too high now — most young people need a loan to buy a house.
3. 她每个月要还三千块的贷款，压力很大。 She has to repay three thousand yuan in loans every month, which is a lot of pressure.

Usage Guide

Context: finance, banking, real estate

Tone: professional

Do Say

• 我想申请贷款买房。(I want to apply for a loan to buy a house.)
• 贷款利率最近有所下降。(Loan interest rates have dropped recently.)

Don't Say

• '贷款'是正式的金融术语——朋友间借钱用'借钱'而非'贷款' (贷款 is a formal financial term — for borrowing from friends, use 借钱 not 贷款)

Origin & History

Compound of 贷 (to lend, to borrow) + 款 (sum of money), literally meaning borrowed funds.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal