Mortgage
Etymology
From Old French "mort gage" — "dead pledge". mort "dead" (Latin mortuus) + gage "pledge". The jurist Coke explained the name: the pledge “dies” either when the debt is paid, freeing the property, or when the borrower fails and forfeits it. Either way the deal reaches a death.
noun · /MOR-gij/
A long-term loan used to buy property, secured by the property itself as collateral.
What it names
The specific loan that turns renting into owning — and the standing claim the lender holds on your home until it is fully repaid.
Example
Locking in a fixed-rate mortgage meant their payment wouldn’t change for thirty years.
Related idea
Distinguish collateral, the general term for any asset pledged against a loan; in a mortgage, the collateral is the house itself, which is why the bank can foreclose.