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pay back

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pay

1  [pey] verb, paid or (Obsolete except for defs. 12, 24c ) payed; pay⋅ing; noun, adjective
Use pay back in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to settle (a debt, obligation, etc.), as by transferring money or goods, or by doing something: Please pay your bill.
2. to give over (a certain amount of money) in exchange for something: He paid twenty dollars for the shirt.
3. to transfer money as compensation or recompense for work done or services rendered; to satisfy the claims of (a person, organization, etc.), as by giving money due: He paid me for my work.
4. to defray (cost or expense).
5. to give compensation for.
6. to yield a recompense or return to; be profitable to: Your training will pay you well in the future.
7. to yield as a return: The stock paid six percent last year.
8. to requite, as for good, harm, or an offense: How can I pay her for her kindness and generosity?
9. to give or render (attention, respects, compliments, etc.), as if due or fitting.
10. to make (a call, visit, etc.).
11. to suffer in retribution; undergo: You'll pay the penalty for your stubbornness!
12. Nautical. to let (a ship) fall off to leeward.
–verb (used without object)
13. to transfer money, goods, etc., as in making a purchase or settling a debt.
14. to discharge a debt or obligation.
15. to yield a return, profit, or advantage; be worthwhile: It pays to be courteous.
16. to give compensation, as for damage or loss sustained.
17. to suffer or be punished for something: The murderer paid with his life.
–noun
18. the act of paying or being paid; payment.
19. wages, salary, or a stipend.
20. a person with reference to solvency or reputation for meeting obligations: The bank regards him as good pay.
21. paid employment: in the pay of the enemy.
22. reward or punishment; requital.
23. a rock stratum from which petroleum is obtained.
–adjective
24. requiring subscribed or monthly payment for use or service: pay television.
25. operable or accessible on deposit of a coin or coins: a pay toilet.
26. of or pertaining to payment.
—Verb phrases
27. pay down,
a. to pay (part of the total price) at the time of purchase, with the promise to pay the balance in installments: On this plan you pay only ten percent down.
b. to pay off or back; amortize: The company's debt is being paid down rapidly.
28. pay for, to suffer or be punished for: to pay for one's sins.
29. pay off,
a. to pay (someone) everything that is due that person, esp. to do so and discharge from one's employ.
b. to pay (a debt) in full.
c. Informal. to bribe.
d. to retaliate upon or punish.
e. Nautical. to fall off to leeward.
f. to result in success or failure: The risk paid off handsomely.
30. pay out,
a. to distribute (money, wages, etc.); disburse.
b. to get revenge upon for an injury; punish.
c. to let out (a rope) by slackening.
31. pay up,
a. to pay fully.
b. to pay on demand: The gangsters used threats of violence to force the shopkeepers to pay up.
—Idioms
32. pay as you go,
a. to pay for (goods, services, etc.) at the time of purchase, as opposed to buying on credit.
b. to spend no more than income permits; keep out of debt.
c. to pay income tax by regular deductions from one's salary or wages.
33. pay back,
a. to repay or return: to pay back a loan.
b. to retaliate against or punish: She paid us back by refusing the invitation.
c. to requite.
34. pay one's or its way,
a. to pay one's portion of shared expenses.
b. to yield a return on one's investment sufficient to repay one's expenses: It will take time for the restaurant to begin paying its way.
Origin:
1150–1200; ME payen < OF paier < ML pācāre to satisfy, settle (a debt), L: to pacify (by force of arms). See peace

Synonyms:
1. discharge, liquidate. 3. reward, reimburse, indemnify. 19. remuneration, emolument, fee, honorarium, income, allowance. Pay, wage or wages, salary, stipend are terms for amounts of money or equivalent benefits, usually given at a regular rate or at regular intervals, in return for services. Pay is the general term: His pay went up every year. Wage usually designates the pay given at an hourly, daily, or weekly rate, often for manual or semiskilled work; wages usually means the cumulative amount paid at regular intervals for such work: an hourly wage; weekly wages. Salary designates a fixed, periodic payment for regular work or services, usually computed on a monthly or yearly basis: an annual salary paid in twelve equal monthly installments. Stipend designates a periodic payment, either as a professional salary or, more commonly, as a salary in return for special services or as a grant in support of creative or scholarly work: an annual stipend for work as a consultant; a stipend to cover living expenses.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Word Origin & History

pay  (v.)
c.1200, "to appease, pacify, satisfy," from O.Fr. paiier (12c.), from L. pacare "to please, pacify, satisfy" (especially a creditor), from pax (gen. pacis) "peace." Meaning "to give what is due for goods or services" arose in M.L., was attested in Eng. by c.1225; sense of "please, pacify" died out in Eng. by 1500. Sense of "suffer, endure" (a punishment, etc.) is first recorded 1387. Payday first attested 1529. Payphone first attested 1936.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

pay back

  1. Repay a debt or a loan, as in I'll pay you back next month.

  2. Also, pay back in someone's own coin. Revenge oneself, repay in kind, as in He thought he could get away with copying my plans, but I'll pay him back in his own coin. This expression refers to repaying a debt in exactly the same currency in which the money had been lent. [c. 1600]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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