equity en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
From Middle English equitee, equytee, from Old French equité, from Latin aequitās (“uniformity; impartiality; fairness”).
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) Fairness, impartiality, or justice as determined in light of "natural law" or "natural right".
“One of the staff said, ‘That’s fine, Delia. But what do wolves have to do with equity, justice and inclusion?’" Ms. Malone said.
2025 November 7, David A. Fahrenthold, Claire Brown, quoting Delia Malone, “The Sierra Club Embraced Social Justice. Then It Tore Itself Apart.”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:Sufficeth what they in their graue wiſedoomes ſhall proſcribe, I in no ſorte will ſeeke to acquite, nor preſumptuouſly attempte to diſpute againſt the equity of their iudgementes, but humble and proſtrate appeale to their mercies.
1599, [Thomas] Nashe, Nashes Lenten Stuffe, […], London: […] [Thomas Judson and Valentine Simmes] for N[icholas] L[ing] and C[uthbert] B[urby] […], →OCLC, page 2:
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(countable, uncountable) Various related senses originating with the Court of Chancery in late Medieval England ▸ The power of a court of law having extra-statutory discretion, to decide legal matters and to provide legal relief apart from, though not in violation of, the prevailing legal code; in some cases, a court "sitting in equity" may provide relief to a complainant should the code be found either inapplicable or insufficient to do so.
Equity had been gradually shaping itself into a refined science which no human faculties could master without long and intense application.
1848-55, Thomas Babington Macaulay, History of England, Chapter IXA Court of equity interposes only according to conscience.
1851, Edward Sugden, 1st Baron St Leonards in Birch v. Joy (1851), 3 H. L. C. 5981800, Lloyd Kenyon, 1st Baron Kenyon in Mayor, &c. of Southampton v. Graves (1800), 8 T. R. 592. A Court of equity knows its own province.
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(countable, uncountable) Various related senses originating with the Court of Chancery in late Medieval England ▸ A right which accrues to a party in a transaction because of the nature of the transaction itself, and which is exercisable upon a change of circumstances or conditions; in other words, an equitable claim.
The wife's equity does not, according to the adjudged cases, attach, except upon that part of her personal property in action which the husband cannot acquire without the assistance of a court of equity
1826, James Kent, Commentaries on American Law:...the mortgagor retains ‘equitable title’ or the ‘equity of redemption’….The equity of redemption permits the mortgagor to regain legal title to the mortgaged property upon satisfying the conditions of the mortgage...
1999, In Re Fitzgerald, 237 B.R. 252, 261 (Bkrtcy. D.Conn. 1999)
- (England, countable, uncountable) Various related senses originating with the Court of Chancery in late Medieval England ▸ The body of law which was developed in the English Court of Chancery, which Court had extra-statutory discretion, and is now administered alongside the common law of Britain.
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(countable, uncountable) Various senses related to net value ▸ Value of property minus liens or other encumbrances.
I have a lot of equity in my house.
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(countable, uncountable) Various senses related to net value ▸ Ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business.
Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers. Piling debt onto companies’ balance-sheets is only a small part of what leveraged buy-outs are about, they insist. Improving the workings of the businesses they take over is just as core to their calling, if not more so. Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster.
2013 June 22, “Engineers of a different kind”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 70:
- (countable, uncountable) Various senses related to net value ▸ Ownership interest in a company as determined by subtracting liabilities from assets.
- (countable, uncountable) Various senses related to net value ▸ A player's expected share of the pot.
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(countable, nonstandard, uncountable) Equality
What steps the Government are taking to help ensure equity of opportunity for people from low-income families.
2020 July 22, Ben Bradley, “Low-income Families: Equity of Opportunity”, in parliamentary debates (House of Commons), column 2139:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| equities | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| equitie | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic | |
| æquity | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Coordinates
bonds (as stock in a company) · debt (in various financial and economic subsenses)
Deriveds
equity court · equity collar · fold equity · home equity · equity share · dequity · brand equity · nonequity · techquity · owner's equity · equitable · private equity · jury equity · sweat equity · unequity · equitize · ownership equity · guaranteed equity bond · equity language · equity fund · equity of redemption · equitylike · negative equity · non-equity · court of equity
Relateds
Translations (128)
de Aktienkapital (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · pt valor real (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · nl gerechtigheid (justice, impartiality and fairness) · fr action (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · bg нетен капитал (ownership interest in a company) · ota قسط (justice, impartiality and fairness) · de Aktienkapital (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · nb eigenkapital (ownership interest in a company) · eo egaleco (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it equità (justice, impartiality and fairness) · hu törzsrészvény (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cmn 公正 (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it equità (legal tradition) · el καθαρή θέση (ownership interest in a company) · ga cothromas (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cs čistá hodnota (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · ru со́бственный капита́л (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cmn 衡平 (legal tradition) · bg безпристрастие (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cmn 股權 /股权 (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cmn 權益 /权益 (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ru капита́л (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · fr solidarité (justice, impartiality and fairness) · da egenkapital (ownership interest in a company) · de Billigkeit (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cmn 淨值 /净值 (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · eo akcio (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · fr impartialité (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ru а́кция (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · hu részvény (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · fi kohtuudenmukaisuus (legal tradition) · es equidad (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ga cóir (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cs spravedlnost (justice, impartiality and fairness) · fr capitaux propres (ownership interest in a company) · es patrimonio neto (ownership interest in a company) · da rimelighed (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ro capital propriu (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · pt equanimidade (justice, impartiality and fairness) · es epiqueya (justice, impartiality and fairness) · mi mana taurite (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · de Aktien (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ro echitate (justice, impartiality and fairness) · vi sự bình đẳng (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it imparzialità (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it capitale netto (ownership interest in a company) · sv eget kapital (ownership interest in a company) · da aktie (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cmn 股權 /股权 (ownership interest in a company) · hy արդարություն (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it giustezza (justice, impartiality and fairness) · hu tiszta haszon/nyereség (ownership interest in a company) · cmn 權益 /权益 (ownership interest in a company) · it uguaglianza (justice, impartiality and fairness) · es acciones (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · el καθαρή περιουσία (ownership interest in a company) · ka კაპიტალი (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ja 純資産 (ownership interest in a company) · de Gleichstellung (justice, impartiality and fairness) · te ఈక్విటీ (justice, impartiality and fairness) · de Eigenkapital (ownership interest in a company) · ru беспристра́стность (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ro nepărtinire (justice, impartiality and fairness) · de Billigkeitsrecht (legal tradition) · hu jogosság (justice, impartiality and fairness) · de Aktienanteil (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · nn eigenkapital (ownership interest in a company) · de Fairness (justice, impartiality and fairness) · hu méltányosság (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cmn 衡平法 (legal tradition) · da retfærdighed (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ota انصاف (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ru со́бственные сре́дства (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · it patrimonio netto (ownership interest in a company) · gl valor líquido (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · pt valor líquido (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · ru пра́во справедли́вости (legal tradition) · ru беспристра́стие (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cmn 公平 (justice, impartiality and fairness) · nb aksje (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · hu saját tőke (ownership interest in a company) · ota عدالت (justice, impartiality and fairness) · mi tūtanga (ownership interest in a company) · fi equity (legal tradition) · hu részesedés (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · de Gleichberechtigung (justice, impartiality and fairness) · gl equidade (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ca patrimoni net (ownership interest in a company) · fi oikeudenmukaisuus (justice, impartiality and fairness) · fi vapaa arvo (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · fo eginogn (ownership interest in a company) · pt equidade (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ota عدل (justice, impartiality and fairness) · fi oma pääoma (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · nl aandeel (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cs čisté jmění (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · el μετοχικό κεφάλαιο (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ro imparțialitate (justice, impartiality and fairness) · nn aksje (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · cmn 公平性 (justice, impartiality and fairness) · nb egenkapital (ownership interest in a company) · de Unternehmensbeteiligungen (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ru справедли́вость (justice, impartiality and fairness) · de Gerechtigkeit (justice, impartiality and fairness) · it giustizia (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ja 自己資本 (ownership interest in a company) · fi oma pääoma (ownership interest in a company) · el δικαιοσύνη (justice, impartiality and fairness) · el ίδια κεφάλαια (ownership interest in a company) · eo justeco (justice, impartiality and fairness) · la aequitās (justice, impartiality and fairness) · da friværdi (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · ja 衡平法 (legal tradition) · cs rovnost (justice, impartiality and fairness) · eo neta kapitalo (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · ca equitat (legal tradition) · de Gleichheit (justice, impartiality and fairness) · gl accións (ownership, especially in terms of net monetary value of some business) · ga cothromas (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · de Reinvermögen (ownership interest in a company) · mi mana taurite (justice, impartiality and fairness) · eo senpartieco (justice, impartiality and fairness) · da billighedsret (legal tradition) · bg нетен капитал (the value of property minus liens or other encumbrances) · bg справедливост (justice, impartiality and fairness) · ga cothromas (legal tradition) · it parità (justice, impartiality and fairness) · cmn 公正性 (justice, impartiality and fairness)