Leverage

Leverage is just a heavy name for debt. In the finance world, it means to "amp up" the financial impact of something, and it is mostly used when referring to things like a Leveraged Buy Out or LBO. That is, a company or investment vehicle wants to buy an operating company for a billion bucks. They might put down $200 million and borrow $800 million to pay it off, repaying the loan or paying down the leverage over time. The most common LBO? Your home.