What does PAY mean?

Definitions for PAY
peɪpay

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word PAY.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. wage, pay, earnings, remuneration, salaryverb

    something that remunerates

    "wages were paid by check"; "he wasted his pay on drink"; "they saved a quarter of all their earnings"

  2. payverb

    give money, usually in exchange for goods or services

    "I paid four dollars for this sandwich"; "Pay the waitress, please"

  3. give, payverb

    convey, as of a compliment, regards, attention, etc.; bestow

    "Don't pay him any mind"; "give the orders"; "Give him my best regards"; "pay attention"

  4. pay up, ante up, payverb

    cancel or discharge a debt

    "pay up, please!"

  5. yield, pay, bearverb

    bring in

    "interest-bearing accounts"; "How much does this savings certificate pay annually?"

  6. pay, pay off, make up, compensateverb

    do or give something to somebody in return

    "Does she pay you for the work you are doing?"

  7. give, pay, devoteverb

    dedicate

    "give thought to"; "give priority to"; "pay attention to"

  8. payverb

    be worth it

    "It pays to go through the trouble"

  9. payverb

    render

    "pay a visit"; "pay a call"

  10. payverb

    bear (a cost or penalty), in recompense for some action

    "You'll pay for this!"; "She had to pay the penalty for speaking out rashly"; "You'll pay for this opinion later"

  11. payverb

    make a compensation for

    "a favor that cannot be paid back"

  12. payverb

    discharge or settle

    "pay a debt"; "pay an obligation"

Wiktionary

  1. paynoun

    Money given in return for work; salary or wages.

    Many employers have rules designed to keep employees from comparing their pays.

  2. payverb

    To give money in exchange for goods or services.

    He paid him to clean the place up.

  3. payverb

    To be profitable.

    Crime doesn't pay.

  4. payverb

    To be profitable for.

    It didn't pay him to keep the store open any more.

  5. payverb

    To give (something else than money).

    To pay attention

  6. payverb

    To discharge an obligation or debt.

    He was allowed to go as soon as he paid.

  7. payverb

    To suffer consequences.

    He paid for his fun in the sun with a terrible sunburn.

  8. Etymology: From payen, from paier, from pācāre "to settle, satisfy" from paco. Displaced native yelden (from gieldan), scotten (from gescot).

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Paynoun

    Wages; hire; money given in return for service.

    Etymology: from the verb.

    Come on, brave soldiers, doubt not of the day;
    And, that once gotten, doubt not of large pay. William Shakespeare.

    The soldier is willing to be converted, for there is neither pay nor plunder to be got. Roger L'Estrange.

    Money, instead of coming over for the pay of the army, has been transmitted thither for the pay of those forces called from thence. William Temple.

    Here only merit constant pay receives,
    Is blest in what it takes, and what it gives. Alexander Pope.

  2. To PAYverb

    Etymology: paier, Fr. apagar, Spanish; pacare, Lat.

    You have done enough, and have perform’d
    A saint-like sorrow; and indeed paid down
    More penitence, than done trepass. William Shakespeare.

    Your son has paid a soldier’s debt;
    He only liv’d but till he was a man. William Shakespeare.

    She does what she will, say what she will, take all, pay all. William Shakespeare, Merry Wives of Windsor.

    The king and prince
    Then paid their off’rings in a sacred grove
    To Hercules. Dryden.

    An hundred talents of silver did the children of Ammon pay. 2 Chronicles xxvii. 5.

    I have peace offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows. Proverbs vii. 14.

    Have patience, and I will pay thee all. Matthew viii. 26.

    The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again. Ps. xxxvii. 21.

    If this prove true, they’ll pay for ’t. William Shakespeare.

    Bold Prometheus, whose untam’d desire
    Rival’d the sun with his own heav’nly fire,
    Now doom’d the Scythian vulture’s endless prey,
    Severely pays for animating clay. Wentworth Dillon.

    Men of parts, who were to act according to the result of their debates, and often pay for their mistakes with their heads, found those scholastick forms of little use to discover truth. John Locke.

    I follow’d me close, and, with a thought, seven of the eleven I paid. William Shakespeare, Henry IV.

    Forty things more,
    For which, or pay me quickly, or I’ll pay you. Ben Jonson.

    She I love, or laughs at all my pain,
    Or knows her worth too well; and pays me with disdain. John Dryden, Knight’s Tale.

    Riches are got by consuming less of foreign commodities, than what by commodities or labour is paid for. John Locke.

ChatGPT

  1. pay

    Pay refers to the amount of money a person receives for the work they perform during a specific period. This can encompass wages, salary, bonuses, benefits, and other forms of compensation provided by an employer to an employee. Pay can also refer to the act of giving someone money for goods or services rendered.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Payverb

    to cover, as bottom of a vessel, a seam, a spar, etc., with tar or pitch, or waterproof composition of tallow, resin, etc.; to smear

  2. Payverb

    to satisfy, or content; specifically, to satisfy (another person) for service rendered, property delivered, etc.; to discharge one's obligation to; to make due return to; to compensate; to remunerate; to recompense; to requite; as, to pay workmen or servants

  3. Payverb

    hence, figuratively: To compensate justly; to requite according to merit; to reward; to punish; to retort or retaliate upon

  4. Payverb

    to discharge, as a debt, demand, or obligation, by giving or doing what is due or required; to deliver the amount or value of to the person to whom it is owing; to discharge a debt by delivering (money owed)

  5. Payverb

    to discharge or fulfill, as a duy; to perform or render duty, as that which has been promised

  6. Payverb

    to give or offer, without an implied obligation; as, to pay attention; to pay a visit

  7. Payverb

    to give a recompense; to make payment, requital, or satisfaction; to discharge a debt

  8. Payverb

    hence, to make or secure suitable return for expense or trouble; to be remunerative or profitable; to be worth the effort or pains required; as, it will pay to ride; it will pay to wait; politeness always pays

  9. Paynoun

    satisfaction; content

  10. Paynoun

    an equivalent or return for money due, goods purchased, or services performed; salary or wages for work or service; compensation; recompense; payment; hire; as, the pay of a clerk; the pay of a soldier

  11. Etymology: [OF. peier, fr. L. picare to pitch, pix pitch: cf. OF. peiz pitch, F. poix. See Pitch a black substance.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Pay

    pā, v.t. to satisfy or set at rest: to discharge, as a debt or a duty: to requite with what is deserved: to reward: to punish: to give, render.—v.i. to recompense: to be worth one's trouble: to be profitable:—pa.t. and pa.p. paid.—n. that which satisfies: money given for service: salary, wages.—adj. Pay′able, that may be paid: that ought to be paid: due.—ns. Pay′-bill, a statement of moneys to be paid, to workmen, soldiers, &c.; Pay′-clerk, a clerk who pays wages; Pay′-day, a regular day for payment, as of wages; Pay′-dirt, -grav′el, gravel or sand containing enough gold to be worth working; Payee′, one to whom money is paid; Pay′er; Pay′-list, -roll, a list of persons entitled to pay, with the amounts due to each; Pay′master, the master who pays: an officer in the army or navy whose duty it is to pay soldiers, &c.; Pay′ment, the act of paying: the discharge of a debt by money or its equivalent in value: that which is paid: recompense: reward: punishment; Pay′-off′ice, the place where payments are made; Full′-pay, the whole amount of wages, &c., without deductions; Half′-pay (see Half).—Pay down, to pay in cash on the spot; Pay for, to make amends for: to bear the expense of; Pay off, to discharge: to take revenge upon: to requite: (naut.) to fall away to leeward; Pay out, to cause to run out, as rope; Pay round, to turn the ship's head; Pay the piper, to have all expenses to pay.—In the pay of, hired by. [Fr. payer—L. pacāre, to appease; cf. pax, peace.]

  2. Pay

    pā, v.t. (naut., and in the proverb 'the devil to pay') to smear with tar, pitch, &c. [Perh. through O. Fr. peier (Sp. empegar) from L. picāre, to pitch.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. pay

    A buccaneering principle of hire, under the notion of plunder and sharing in prizes, was, no purchase no pay.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. pay

    Is the stipend or salary allowed for each individual serving in the army.

Editors Contribution

  1. pay

    To use or give money or form of official currency for commodities, employment, products, goods or services.

    The couple pay the bills using their joint bank account income as they plan and create their wedding day with love and unity.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 26, 2020  

Suggested Resources

  1. PAY

    What does PAY stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the PAY acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. PAY

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Pay is ranked #28049 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Pay surname appeared 854 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Pay.

    71.6% or 612 total occurrences were White.
    15.6% or 134 total occurrences were Asian.
    6% or 52 total occurrences were Black.
    3.8% or 33 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'PAY' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #627

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'PAY' in Written Corpus Frequency: #316

  3. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'PAY' in Nouns Frequency: #1022

  4. Verbs Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'PAY' in Verbs Frequency: #55

How to pronounce PAY?

How to say PAY in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of PAY in Chaldean Numerology is: 1

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of PAY in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of PAY in a Sentence

  1. Rick Fitzgerald:

    We believe Rob Sellers' pay is appropriate for the executive-level position he fills at U-M and it is in line with the salary of others with similar responsibilities, he is both a vice provost with duties well beyond diversity and the university's chief diversity officer.

  2. Sonia Silva:

    The situation is extremely difficult. We pay and pay and get nothing back, i have no way of escaping from tax, everything we earn we have to declare. The big firms have people thinking 24 hours a day about how they can avoid tax.

  3. Ron Klain:

    Elections are choices, and the choice just could n’t be any clearer right now, democrats have stood up to the big special interests. They stood up to the big corporations and insisted that all corporations pay minimum taxes, stood up to the big oil companies and passed climate change legislation.

  4. Donald Trump:

    She provided favors and access in exchange for cash, she had a pay-to-play scheme. That’s why Congress or a special prosecutor should look into this.

  5. Andreas Park:

    I think this move pre-empts regulation, or a cap on fees as it were, I think this is also a nod toward brokers who are not very happy about having to pay high taker fees.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

PAY#1#599#10000

Translations for PAY

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for PAY »

Translation

Find a translation for the PAY definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"PAY." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/PAY>.

Discuss these PAY definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for PAY? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Browse Definitions.net

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    an attendant who carries the golf clubs for a player
    A caddie
    B flub
    C huff
    D monish

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for PAY: