Rent \Rent\ (r[e^]nt), n. [F. rente, LL. renta, fr. L. reddita,
   fem. sing. or neut. pl. of redditus, p. p. of reddere to give
   back, pay. See {Render}.]
   1. Income; revenue. See {Catel}. [Obs.] "Catel had they
      enough and rent." --Chaucer.
      
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            [Bacchus] a waster was and all his rent
            In wine and bordel he dispent.        --Gower.
      
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            So bought an annual rent or two,
            And liv'd, just as you see I do.      --Pope.
      
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   2. Pay; reward; share; toll. [Obs.]
      
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            Death, that taketh of high and low his rent.
                                                  --Chaucer.
      
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   3. (Law) A certain periodical profit, whether in money,
      provisions, chattels, or labor, issuing out of lands and
      tenements in payment for the use; commonly, a certain
      pecuniary sum agreed upon between a tenant and his
      landlord, paid at fixed intervals by the lessee to the
      lessor, for the use of land or its appendages; as, rent
      for a farm, a house, a park, etc.
      
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   Note: The term rent is also popularly applied to compensation
         for the use of certain personal chattels, as a piano, a
         sewing machine, etc.
         
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   4. (Polit. Econ.)
      (a) That portion of the produce of the earth paid to the
          landlord for the use of the "original and
          indestructible powers of the soil;" the excess of the
          return from a given piece of cultivated land over that
          from land of equal area at the "margin of
          cultivation." Called also {economic rent}, or
          {Ricardian rent}. Economic rent is due partly to
          differences of productivity, but chiefly to advantages
          of location; it is equivalent to ordinary or
          commercial rent less interest on improvements, and
          nearly equivalent to ground rent.
      (b) Loosely, a return or profit from a differential
          advantage for production, as in case of income or
          earnings due to rare natural gifts creating a natural
          monopoly.
          [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

   {Black rent}. See {Blackmail}, 3.

   {Forehand rent}, rent which is paid in advance; foregift.

   {Rent arrear}, rent in arrears; unpaid rent. --Blackstone.

   {Rent charge} (Law), a rent reserved on a conveyance of land
      in fee simple, or granted out of lands by deed; -- so
      called because, by a covenant or clause in the deed of
      conveyance, the land is charged with a distress for the
      payment of it. --Bouvier.

   {Rent roll}, a list or account of rents or income; a rental.
      

   {Rent seck} (Law), a rent reserved by deed, but without any
      clause of distress; barren rent. A power of distress was
      made incident to rent seck by Statute 4 George II. c. 28.
      

   {Rent service} (Eng. Law), rent reserved out of land held by
      fealty or other corporeal service; -- so called from such
      service being incident to it.

   {White rent}, a quitrent when paid in silver; -- opposed to
      black rent.
      
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