Pawning
/ˈpɔːnɪŋ/noun
The act of giving something as security for a loan or, in chess, moving a pawn.
Did you know?The chess piece *pawn* and the financial verb *pawn* are historically unrelated: the piece comes from Old French *pion* (“foot soldier”), while the loanword comes from Old French *pan*/*paan* via the idea of a pledge, so the “sacrifice” vibe is real—but not from one ancient root.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*fōtaz
“foot”
Old French
OF
pion
“foot soldier, infantryman”
Middle English
ME
pawn
“chess piece; later, something deposited as security”
Middle English
ME
pawnen
“to pledge, deposit as security for a loan”
Modern English
EN
pawning
“giving something as security for a debt; moving a pawn in chess”