pay off
Also found in: Thesaurus, Legal, Financial, Idioms.
pay 1
(pā)v. paid (pād), pay·ing, pays
v.tr.
1. To give money to in return for goods or services rendered: pay the cashier.
2. To give (money) in exchange for goods or services: paid four dollars for a hamburger; paid an hourly wage.
3. To discharge or settle (a debt or obligation): paying taxes; paid the bill.
4. To bear (a cost or penalty, for example) in recompense: She paid the price for her unpopular opinions.
5. To yield as a return: a savings plan that paid six percent interest.
6. To afford an advantage to; profit: It paid us to be generous.
7. To give or bestow: paying compliments; paying attention.
8. To make (a visit or call).
9. Past tense and past participle paid or payed (pād) To let out (a line or cable) by slackening.
v.intr.
1. To give money in exchange for goods or services.
2. To discharge a debt or obligation.
3. To bear a cost or penalty in recompense: You'll pay for this mischief!
4. To be profitable or worthwhile: It doesn't pay to get angry.
adj.
1. Of, relating to, giving, or receiving payments.
2. Requiring payment to use or operate: a pay toilet.
3. Yielding valuable metal in mining: a pay streak.
n.
Phrasal Verbs: 1. The act of paying or state of being paid.
2. Money given in return for work done; salary; wages.
3.
a. Recompense or reward: Your thanks are pay enough.
b. Retribution or punishment.
4. Paid employment: the workers in our pay.
5. A person considered with regard to his or her credit or reliability in discharging debts.
pay back
1. To pay or return (what is owed as a debt).
2. To repay (a person who is owed a debt).
3. To give recompense to; reward: How can we ever pay you back for what you've done for us?
4. To reciprocate; return: pay back a kindness.
5. To retaliate against or get revenge upon.
pay down
To reduce (a debt) through payment.
pay off
1. To pay the full amount on (a debt).
2. To result in profit or advantage; succeed: Your efforts will eventually pay off.
3. To pay the wages due to (an employee) upon discharge.
4. To pay (a plaintiff) to settle a lawsuit out of court.
5. To bribe.
6. Nautical To turn or cause to turn (a vessel) to leeward.
pay out
1. To give (money) out; spend.
2. To let out (a line or rope) by slackening.
pay up
Idioms: To give over the full monetary amount demanded.
pay (one's) dues
To earn a given right or position through hard work, long-term experience, or suffering: She paid her dues in small-town theaters before being cast in a Broadway play.
pay (one's) way
To contribute one's own share; pay for oneself.
pay the piper
To bear the consequences of something.
pay through the nose Informal
To pay excessively.
[Middle English paien, from Old French paiier, from Late Latin pācāre, to appease, from Latin, to pacify, subdue, from pāx, pāc-, peace; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]
pay 2
(pā)tr.v. payed or paid (pād), pay·ing, pays
To coat or cover (seams of a ship, for example) with waterproof material such as tar or asphalt.
[Obsolete French peier, from Old French, from Latin picāre, from pix, pic-, pitch.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
pay off
vb
1. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) (tr, adverb) to pay all that is due in wages, etc, and discharge from employment
2. (Banking & Finance) (tr, adverb) to pay the complete amount of (a debt, bill, etc)
3. (intr, adverb) to turn out to be profitable, effective, etc: the gamble paid off.
4. (or: intr, preposition) to take revenge on (a person) or for (a wrong done): to pay someone off for an insult.
5. (tr, adverb) informal to give a bribe to
6. (Nautical Terms) (intr, adverb) nautical (of a vessel) to make leeway
n
7. the final settlement, esp in retribution: the payoff came when the gang besieged the squealer's house.
8. informal the climax, consequence, or outcome of events, a story, etc, esp when unexpected or improbable
9. the final payment of a debt, salary, etc
10. the time of such a payment
11. informal a bribe
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | pay off - yield a profit or result; "His efforts finally paid off" |
| 2. | pay off - eliminate by paying off (debts) lift - pay off (a mortgage) | |
| 3. | pay off - pay off (loans or promissory notes) pay - give money, usually in exchange for goods or services; "I paid four dollars for this sandwich"; "Pay the waitress, please" | |
| 4. |  pay off - do or give something to somebody in return; "Does she pay you for the work you are doing?"settle - dispose of; make a financial settlement | |
| 5. | pay off - pay someone with influence in order to receive a favor crime, criminal offence, criminal offense, law-breaking, offense, offence - (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act; "a long record of crimes" bribe, grease one's palms, buy, corrupt - make illegal payments to in exchange for favors or influence; "This judge can be bought" | |
| 6. | pay off - take vengeance on or get even; "We'll get them!"; "That'll fix him good!"; "This time I got him" get back, get even - take revenge or even out a score; "I cannot accept the defeat--I want to get even" pay - make a compensation for; "a favor that cannot be paid back" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
pay
verb1. To give payment to in return for goods or services rendered:
2. To give compensation to:
3. To distribute (money) as payment.Also used with out:
4. To set right by giving what is due.Off or up:
5. To make as income or profit:
6. To give a satisfactory return to:
pay back
phrasal verb
pay off
1. To exact revenge for or from:
Informal: fix.
Archaic: wreak.
Idioms: even the score, get back at, get even with, pay back in kind, settle accounts, take an eye for an eye.
2. Informal. To give, offer, or promise a bribe to:
Idiom: grease someone's palm.
Payment for work done:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يحقِّقُ نَتائِج جَيِّدَهيَدْفَع التَّعويضات كامِلَةً
propustitvyplatitvyplatit se
afviklelønne sig
borga sig, heppnastgera upp viî
vyplatiť a prepustiť
iyi sonuç vermeksemeresini vermekücretini ödeyip işine son vermek
w>pay off
vt sep workmen → auszahlen; seamen → abmustern; debt → abbezahlen, tilgen; HP → ab(be)zahlen; mortgage → abtragen; creditor → befriedigen; if this happens again we’ll have to pay him off → wenn das noch einmal vorkommt, müssen wir ihn entlassen
vi → sich auszahlen
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
pay
(pei) – past tense, past participle paid – verb1. to give (money) to (someone) in exchange for goods, services etc. He paid $5 for the book.
2. to return (money that is owed). It's time you paid your debts.
3. to suffer punishment (for). You'll pay for that remark!
4. to be useful or profitable (to). Crime doesn't pay.
5. to give (attention, homage, respect etc). Pay attention!; to pay one's respects.
noun money given or received for work etc; wages. How much pay do you get?
ˈpayable adjective which may be or must be paid. The account is payable at the end of the month.
payˈee noun a person to whom money is (to be) paid.
ˈpayment noun1. money etc paid. The TV can be paid for in ten weekly payments.
2. the act of paying. He gave me a book in payment for my kindness.
ˈpay-packet noun an envelope containing a person's wages. The manager handed out the pay-packets.
ˈpay-roll noun1. a list of all the workers in a factory etc. We have 450 people on the pay-roll.
2. the total amount of money to be paid to all the workers. The thieves stole the pay-roll.
pay back1. to give back (to someone something that one has borrowed). I'll pay you back as soon as I can.
2. to punish. I'll pay you back for that!
pay off1. to pay in full and discharge (workers) because they are no longer needed. Hundreds of steel-workers have been paid off.
2. to have good results. His hard work paid off.
pay up to give (money) to someone, eg in order to pay a debt. You have three days to pay up (= You must pay up within three days).
put paid to to prevent a person from doing (something he planned or wanted to do). The rain put paid to our visit to the zoo.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.