债务 (zhài wù) is a formal noun meaning 'debt'—specifically financial debt owed by an individual, business, or government. The first character 债 (zhài) means 'debt' or 'obligation', often implying money borrowed and not yet repaid; the second character 务 (wù) means 'affair', 'matter', or 'duty', reinforcing the sense of a binding responsibility. Together, they form a compound emphasizing a serious, legally or morally enforceable financial obligation—not casual borrowing among friends.

This term appears frequently in news reports, legal documents, corporate financial statements, and economic discussions. It carries neutral-to-negative connotations depending on context: high national debt may signal economic risk, while manageable business debt can reflect strategic investment. Unlike colloquial terms like 欠款 (qiàn kuǎn, 'amount owed'), 债务 sounds official and institutional, rarely used in informal speech or personal conversations about small sums.