- a legal agreement that allows you to use a building, a piece of equipment or some land for a period of time, usually in return for rent
- to take out a lease on a house
- The lease expires/runs out next year.
- Under the terms of the lease, you have to pay maintenance charges.
Collocations Moving houseMoving house Renting- live in a rented/(especially North American English) rental property
- rent/share/move into a furnished house/(British English) flat/(especially North American English) apartment
- rent a studio/(British English) a studio flat/(especially North American English) a studio apartment/(British English) a bedsit
- find/get a housemate/(British English) a flatmate/(North American English) a roommate
- sign/break the lease/rental agreement/contract
- extend/renew/terminate the lease/(British English) tenancy
- afford/pay the rent/the bills/(North American English) the utilities
- (especially British English) fall behind with/ (especially North American English) fall behind on the rent
- pay/lose/return a damage deposit/(North American English) security deposit
- give/receive a month’s/two-weeks’ notice to leave/vacate the property
- have a flat/an apartment/a room (British English) to let/(especially North American English) for rent
- rent (out)/lease (out)/ (British English) let (out)/sublet a flat/an apartment/a house/a property
- collect/increase/raise the rent
- evict the existing tenants
- attract/find new/prospective tenants
- invest in rental property/(British English) property to let/(British English) the buy-to-let market
- buy/acquire/purchase a house/(a) property/(especially North American English) (a piece of) prime real estate
- call/contact/use (British English) an estate agent/(North American English) a Realtor™/(North American English) a real estate agent/broker
- make/ (British English) put in an offer on a house
- put down/save for (British English) a deposit on a house
- make/put/save for (especially North American English) a down payment on a house/home
- apply for/arrange/take out a mortgage/home loan
- (struggle to) pay the mortgage
- make/meet/keep up/cover the monthly mortgage payments/(British English also) repayments
- (British English) repossess/ (especially North American English) foreclose on somebody’s home/house
- put your house/property on the market/up for sale/up for auction
- increase/lower your price/the asking price
- have/hold/hand over the deed/(especially British English) deeds of/to the house, land, etc.
Extra ExamplesTopics Houses and homesc1, Law and justicec1- He took a lease of the premises.
- She has taken out a new ten-year lease on the building.
- The club has a 20-year lease on the property.
- The company holds the building on a long lease.
- The lease runs from April 19.
- They have a lease with five years to run.
- They moved out and the lease was surrendered.
- Under the new lease, the rent would go up.
- a new clause in the lease
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- long
- long-term
- short
- …
- have
- hold
- acquire
- …
- run
- take effect
- come up for renewal
- …
- agreement
- payment
- in a/the lease
- on a lease
- under a/the lease
- …
- a clause in a lease
- a condition of a lease
- the provisions of a lease
- …
Word Originlate Middle English: from Old French lais, leis, from lesser, laissier ‘let, leave’, from Latin laxare ‘make loose’, from laxus ‘loose, lax’.
Idioms
See lease in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee lease in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englisha (new) lease of life (British English)
(North American English a (new) lease on life)
- the chance to live or last longer, or with a better quality of life
- Since her hip operation she's had a new lease of life.
Check pronunciation:
lease