# owe
## English
### Etymology

From Middle English owen, from Old English āgan, from Proto-West Germanic *aigan (“to own”), from Proto-Germanic *aiganą, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₂óyḱe (“to possess, own”), reduplicated stative of *h₂eyḱ- (“to own”). See also own, ought.
Cognate with Sanskrit ईष्टे (īṣṭe, “to own, possess”).

### Pronunciation

* (UK) IPA: /əʊ/
* (US) enPR: ō, IPA: /oʊ/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Homophones: o, O, oh
* Rhymes: -əʊ

### Verb

owe (third-person singular simple present owes, present participle owing, simple past owed or (archaic) ought, past participle owed or (archaic) own)
* (ditransitive) To be under an obligation to give something back to someone or to perform some action for someone.
    I owe Kevin five bucks which he lent to me last week.
    This time I'll cover for you, but now you owe me a favour.
** 1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], Act I:VVe owe God a death, and we can but die:
** c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:[…] To you, Antonio, I owe the most, in money and in love; And from your love I have a warranty To unburden all my plots and purposes How to get clear of all the debts I owe.
** 1854, Charles Dickens, chapter 7, in Hard Times. For These Times, London: Bradbury & Evans, […], →OCLC:He inherited a fair fortune from his uncle, but owed it all before he came into it, and spent it twice over immediately afterwards.
* (intransitive) To have debt; to be in debt.
* (transitive) To have as a cause; used with to.
    The record owes its success to the outstanding guitar solos.

#### Usage notes

* The original past tense form was ought, which during Middle English began to be used with indefinite signification and has become a distinct verb. The original past participle survives in the adjective own.

#### Derived terms

* how much do I owe you
* owe it to oneself
* owe out
* owe someone one
* the world owes one a living
* to what do I owe the pleasure

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

### Anagrams

* woe

## Avava
### Noun

owe
* water

### Further reading

* Terry Crowley et al, The Avava Language of Central Malakula (Vanuatu) (2006)

## Bavarian
### Alternative forms

* owi, noi

### Etymology

From Middle High German abhin, abehin, equivalent to å + hi. Compare archaic German abhin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɔːβɛ/

### Adverb

owe
* (East Central Bavarian) down, downwards (direction away from the speaker)
    Antonym: auffe

#### Usage notes

Bavarian adverbs of direction come in pairs: endings in -i or -e denote direction away from the speaker (akin to hi), and endings in -a denote direction towards the speaker (akin to her).

#### Related terms

* owa

## Middle English
### Pronoun

owe
* Alternative form of yow

## Polish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɔ.vɛ/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -ɔvɛ
* Syllabification: o‧we

### Pronoun

owe
* nonvirile nominative/accusative/vocative plural of ów

## Yoruba
### Alternative forms

* òghe
* òe (Ekiti)

### Etymology 1

Folk etymology explains that it comes from ò- (“nominalizing prefix”) +‎ wé (“to wrap, to twist”), literally “That which wraps something around something else (another meaning)”.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ò.wē/

#### Noun

òwe
* proverb, adage, saying

### Etymology 2

Compare with Igala ògè

#### Alternative forms

* òghè (Ondo)
* òè (Ekiti)

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ò.wè/

#### Noun

òwè
* a species of black monkey; (in particular) Collared mangabey

##### Derived terms

* bí alákẹdun rọ̀, tó fọwọ́ ṣẹ́; agbọ̀n la ó fi kó ọmọ òwè níbẹ̀ (“If the colobus monkey breaks its arm while suspended from a tree, Collard mangabeys will be scooped off the place by the basketful”)
* ikú tó pa òwè ń pòwe fún ẹdun (“the death that killed the Collared mangabey sends a proverbial message to the colobus monkey”)