- 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’.Want to learn more?
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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