borrows

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of borrow.

   The author borrows heavily from older folk traditions in her latest novel.

   Whenever the team borrows equipment from another lab, they return it the same day.

   Note

   The -s form shared by every sense of the verb. A writer borrows an idea, a language borrows a word, and in subtraction a pupil borrows from the next digit. One use needs care. In Malaysia, Singapore and the West Midlands it can mean "lends" (she borrows me her notes), but that usage is proscribed in standard English, where the lender lends and the borrower borrows. The same spelling is also the plural noun.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of borrow.

   Reading the borrows correctly is the difference between a made putt and a miss.

   The course architect built subtle borrows into every green to challenge stronger players.

   Note

   A plural with several unrelated singulars behind it. On a green, borrows are the slopes that pull a rolling ball off a straight line, and a good putt depends on reading them. Engineers dig borrow pits, and Rust programmers speak of borrows when one region of code temporarily takes over a value's ownership. The older meanings, a pledge or a surety standing bail, are archaic.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2