1. The practice of lending money and charging the borrower very high interest rates: Joan's husband was accused of a criminal act of usuary because he was charging an unlawfully high rate of interest when he loaned money to his fellow workers.

When Maggie tried to borrow some money to pay her medical bills, she went to a local loan agency and when she was told how much interest she would have to pay, she told the dealer that he said the rates he was charging were "fair", but she said his required payment was bordering on usury!

2. Etymology: from Anglo-Norman usurie; from Medieval Latin usuria, an alteration of classical Latin usura, "use of money lent"; hence, "interest".