/ ˈfaɪnæns; NAmE ; faɪˈnæns; fəˈnæns/ noun , verb
■ noun
1.
[ U ] finance (for sth) money used to run a business, an activity or a project :
Finance for education comes from taxpayers.
2.
[ U ] the activity of managing money, especially by a government or commercial organization :
the Minister of Finance
the finance director / department
a diploma in banking and finance
the world of high finance (= finance involving large companies or countries)
3.
finances [ pl. ] the money available to a person, an organization or a country; the way this money is managed :
government / public / personal finances
It's about time you sorted out your finances.
Moving house put a severe strain on our finances.
■ verb
[ vn ] to provide money for a project
SYN fund :
The building project will be financed by the government.
He took a job to finance his stay in Germany.
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Old French , from finer make an end, settle a debt, from fin end, from Latin finis end (in medieval Latin denoting a sum paid on settling a lawsuit). The original sense was payment of a debt, compensation, or ransom ; later taxation, revenue . Current senses date from the 18th cent., and reflect sense development in French .