In contracts. A written discharge, whereby one is freed from an obligation to pay money or perform a duty. It differs from a release in not requiring to be under seal. This word, though perhaps not strictly speaking synonymous with “receipt,” includes it. A receipt is one form of an acquittance; a discharge is another. A receipt in full is an acquittance, and a receipt for a part of a demand or obligation is an acquittance pro tanto. State v. Shelters, 51 Vt. 104, 31 Am. Rep. 679.