Contracts legal terms
The building blocks of enforceable promises — offers, consideration, breach, and remedies. Start here if you signed something and want to know what it means.
What belongs in contracts
This group collects the words people most often look up when they touch promises and agreements. Each entry explains the term in everyday language, notes where the word comes from, and walks through a short example so the idea is concrete rather than abstract. Related terms are linked at the bottom of every page, so you can follow the concept from one word to the next.
Contract law answers a deceptively simple question: when is a promise enforceable? The answer involves offer, acceptance, and consideration, and it is complicated by rules like the statute of frauds, which requires some agreements to be in writing. The entries below walk through each building block in order.
People want to know when a promise becomes enforceable, what makes a breach serious, and how damages are measured. The list covers offers, acceptance, consideration, and the remedies a court can order, from damages to specific performance. It also explains the clauses people meet in real contracts, such as liquidated damages, indemnification, and force majeure.
Reading a contract clause
Contracts are full of short phrases that carry large consequences. A severability clause keeps the rest of the agreement alive if one part fails; a non-compete limits what you can do after the deal; a waiver of subrogation changes who your insurance can pursue. Opening the matching entry turns an unfamiliar phrase into an idea you can evaluate.
Understanding the terms also changes how you negotiate. If you know what liquidated damages means and when it is enforceable, you can push back on an excessive amount. If you know that an assignment transfers rights but not duties, you can see the risk in a clause that allows the other side to hand the contract to someone else.
Before you act
These explanations are for general understanding. Whether a promise is enforceable, and what a clause means, depends on state law and the specific language of the agreement, so confirm anything important with a licensed attorney before signing.
Browse the terms
The full list for this topic is below. Each entry includes a definition, an origin note, a real-world example, and links to related words, so you can compare concepts and follow the vocabulary of contracts from one term to the next.