[] () a measure of how much debt (= loans, bonds, etc.) a company uses in order to finance its activities, compared to money invested by shareholders 债务股本比（公司负债额与股东股本之间的比率）◆a debt-equity ratio of 3:1 (= for every dollar invested by shareholders, the company borrows another 3 dollars) 债务股本比为 3:1 （股东每投入 1 元，公司另外借入 3 元）◆A high debt-equity ratio results in high returns for shareholders, but potentially big losses if the company fails. 高额的债务股本比会给股东带来高收益，但若公司倒闭，潜在亏损也会很大。SYNgearing