iou

«iou» in Mova's school dictionary: A short written note that says you owe someone money; it… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

noun (an IOU, IOUs) — an abbreviation

meaning for a pupil

1) A short written note that says you owe someone money; it stands for «I owe you» because the letters sound like those words. tree →

2) (informal) A promise to do something or pay back later. tree →

sense in the lessons

In maths and money lessons IOUs show debt: the note means someone must pay later. In everyday life children write IOUs for pocket money or favours, and in stories an IOU can be a clue to a debt. Phrases: write an IOU, an IOU for £5, give someone an IOU.

examples

• I didn't have any money, so I gave my sister an IOU for £2. tree →
• Dad found an old IOU in his wallet. tree →
• The pirate's map came with an IOU for ten gold coins. tree →
• My birthday card had an IOU for a trip to the cinema. tree →
• If you write an IOU, you must pay it back. tree →
• Tom has three IOUs from his brother for chores. tree →
• An IOU for $10 means the writer owes $10. tree →

note

Usually written in capitals: IOU, plural IOUs. «An IOU», because the first sound is «eye». It is a pun: I-O-U sounds like «I owe you». In maths problems, an IOU counts as money owed, so it is taken away from what the writer has.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «iou» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.