Pay Off

Definition: Pay Off

Pay Off

Verb

1. Yield a profit or result; "His efforts finally paid off".

2. Eliminate by paying off; as of debts.

3. Pay off, as of loans or promissory notes.

4. Do or give something to somebody in return; "Does she pay you for the work you are doing?".

5. Pay someone with influence in order to receive a favor.

6. Take vengeance on or get even; "We'll get them!" "That'll fix him good!" "This time I got him".

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Synonyms: Pay Off

Retaliation

Verb: retaliate, retort, turn upon; pay, pay off, pay back; pay in one's own coin, pay in the same coin; cap; reciprocate; turn the tables upon, return the compliment; give a quid pro quo; Noun: give as much as one takes, give as good as one gets; give and take, exchange fisticuffs; be quits, be even with; pay off old scores.

Crosswords: Pay Off

Woo-hoo! Who woulda guessed reading and writing would pay off! (The Simpsons; writing credit: Artur Brauner; Paul Hengge)

The next woman takes me on's gonna light up like a pinball machine and pay off in silver dollars! (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; writing credit: Bo Goldman; Lawrence Hauben)

The next woman takes me on's gonna light up like a pinball machine and pay off in silver dollars! (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; writing credit: Bo Goldman; Lawrence Hauben)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• 10 Steps to Making Your Show Leads Pay Off (reference)

• It's Who You Know: How to Make the Right Business Connections -- and Make Them Pay Off (reference)

• Manufacturing Advantage: Why High-Performance Work Systems Pay Off (reference)

• People Investment: How to Make Your Hiring Decisions Pay Off for Everyone (Psi Successful Business Library) (reference)

• Restaurant Newsletters That Pay Off (reference)

  (more book examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

"Why not pay off all our debts with a credit card?". Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Business

In the past, developers unable to pay off bank loans simply walked away from the problem. (references)

To pay off the loan, Vodokanal plans to distribute the French technology throughout Russia. (references)

Investment in the services of a U.K. advertising agency, media buying, or PR firm can pay off in the long run by preventing costly media buying errors. (references)

Civil Liberties

Singapore

In April the Government approved an application by a nongovernmental organization (NGO) to hold an open air rally to raise money to help opposition politician J.B. Jeyaretnam pay off his defamation suit debts. (references)

Economic History

Moldova

Moldova also redeemed bonds worth USD 140 million in order to pay off part of its Gazprom debt. (references)

Russia

Many U.S. firms which invested in Russia for strategic reasons, based on the promise of long-term position rather than short-term sales, are beginning to see their investments finally pay off, and are considering expansion in Russia. (references)

Political Economy

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

For example, in September 1999 the government agreed to pay off $125 million in debts of the State Sugar Council in connection with the privatization of that entity. (references)

Worker Rights

Nigeria

Upon arrival many were forced into prostitution in order to pay off debts. (references)

Australia

Some women have been subjected to what is essentially indentured sexual servitude in order to pay off a "contract debt" to their traffickers in exchange for visas, plane tickets, food, and shelter. (references)

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Expressions using "pay off": pay off a debt ♦ pay off a grudge ♦ pay off a grudge against smb. ♦ pay off old scores ♦ pay off one's debt ♦ pay off the balance ♦ to pay off ♦ to pay off creditors. Additional references.

Albanian

paguaj plotësisht, shlyhem me dikë, marr hakun (avenge, fix, get even with, pay back, revenge), lahem (bathe, lave, square accounts with smb., swim in, wash), jap fryte (produce), i jap duart nga puna. (various references)

Arabic 

‏فائدة (advantage, avail, behoof, benefit, good, increase, interest, living, pay-book, profit, scoop, use, usefulness, usury, utility, welfare, worth), ‏فدية (buy, ransom), ‏مكافأة (consideration, hay, incentive, pay, payment, recompense, remuneration, repayment, requital, retribution, reward, rewarding), ‏دفع كل دينه, ‏دفع مستحقات عليه. (various references)

Bulgarian 

уреждам си сметките (settle up), разчиствам си сметките, разплащам се (pay, settle), отклонявам се от курса (bag, sag, sheer, yaw), отмъщавам (revenge, wreak), погасявам (amortise, amortize, clear off, extinguish, quit, redeem, sink), имам успех (go over, score, succeed as, take, take on), изплащам си, давам резултат, давам подкуп (graft). (various references)

Czech

vyplatit se, vyplatit (buy out, clear off, pay away, pay out), revanšovat se. (various references)

Danish

afbetale. (various references)

Dutch

delgen (amortize, deaden, redeem), aflossen (amortize, deaden, redeem, take the place of), afbetalen (amortize, deaden, pay on account). (various references)

Esperanto

finpagi, elpagi (redeem). (various references)

Finnish

puuduttaa (amortize, anesthetize, cancel, declare invalid), lyhentää (abbreviate, abridge, curtail, cut short, shorten), antaa lopputili. (various references)

French

acquitter (pay, pay back). (various references)

Frisian

ôflosse (amortize, deaden, redeem). (various references)

German

tilgen (amortize, compound, delete, erase, exterminate, liquidate, obliterate, redeem, satisfy, to amortize, to obliterate, to pay off, wear away, wipe out), löschen (amortize, blot, blow out, clear, close, deaden, delete, discharge, erase, erasure, expunge, extinguish, kill, land, put out, quench, redeem, rub off, rub out, scratch, slake, souse, strike off, switch out, to delete, to erase, to expunge, to extinguish, to kill, to slake, turn off, unload, unship, wipe out, zap). (various references)

Greek 

ξοφλώ (pay up, settle), πληρωμή (defrayment, outgo, pay, payment, payoff), εξόφληση (acquitance, quietus, quittance). (various references)

Hebrew 

לשלם �"כל (pay up). (various references)

Hungarian

törlesztés (amortization, redeeming, redemption, repayment), megtérülés, megfizet valamiért, leszámolás (payoff, pay-off, reckoning, showdown), kifizet (disburse, pay out, to buy off, to clear off, to disburse, to discharge, to honor, to honour, to pay off, to pay out, to stump up), kiegyenlít (balance, clear off, compensate, equalize, equate, even, harmonize, level, offset, pay, to accommodate, to acquit, to equalize, to equate, to equilibrate, to even, to iron out, to level off, to level out, to liquidate, to make good, to make square, to make up, to offset, to pay off, to reconcile, wipe out), elszámolás (liquidation, off reckoning, pay-off, reckoning, score, settlement, settling). (various references)

Italian

saldare (balance, discharge, join, knit, link, link up with, pay, reckon up, settle, solder, Square, square up, strike, strike a balance, weld, welding), liquidare (clear, despatch, disburse, dispatch, get rid of, kill, liquidate, pay, sell off, settle, wind up), funzionare (act, behave, function, go, operate, run, tick, work), dare dei frutti. (various references)

Manx

glenney (act of vindication, chip, clarification, clarification honey, clarify, clean, cleaner, clearance; glass, discharge, draw, draw as fowl, dust, expurgate, freshen, grub, purge, purification, purify, rid, satisfaction, scale, scavenge, settlement, sink, try out, try out as metal, weed, wipe), eeck (clear off debt, pay, pay for, pay out, payment, remittance), cur gys yn dorrys. (various references)

Pig Latin

aypay offay

Portuguese

produzir efeito (take effect), pagar tudo, pôr na rua (oust, out, sack, turn out), ter êxito (succeed), saldar (balance, clear, liquidate, pay, satisfy), liquidar (acquit, close out, defray, despatch, dispatch, knock off, liquidate, pay, pay down, pay up, rub out, satisfy, sell out, settle), licenciar (cashier, commission, disband, licence, license), despedir (cashier, dismiss, displace, dispose of, drive away, fire, fling, remove, sack, speed, turn off), desarmar um navio. (various references)

Romanian

platã (anticipation, charge, check, custom, defrayal, disbursement, discharge, due, fee, hire, offset, pay, payment, price, reward, wages), plãti integral, plãti ca sã tacã, socotealã (account, bill, calculation, cast, check, computation, consideration, count, counting, idea, offset, profit, reckoning, reflection, shot, supposition), se rãzbuna (be even with smb., get equal with smb., get even with smb., repay, retaliate, revenge oneself on smb., serve out, take revenge for smth. on smb., take vengeance on, wreak), reuşi (answer, be a success, bring home the bacon, contrive, do well, go on, hit, make one's mark, manage, pan out, pass, prevail, prosper, qualify, speed, strike, strike oil, succeed, win, work), retribuţie (distribution, remuneration, retribution, salary), deznodãmânt (catastrophe, denouement, issue, upshot), dezarma (demobilize, disarm, dismantle, strip), debarca (debark, discharge, disembark, go ashore, land, unload, unship), concedia (boot, discard, discharge, dismiss, drum out, fire, give notice, put out, retire, sack, shelve, suspend, turn off), amortiza (absorb, amortize, break, cushion, damp, deaden, extinguish, liquidate, redeem), achita (acquit, clear, defray, discharge, exonerate from, liquidate, pay, pay down, quit, receipt, remit, satisfy, Square, trace). (various references)

Russian 

расплачиваться сполна. (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

podmititi (bribe, get to, suborn, tamper), otplatiti, isplatiti (disburse, fee, pay out). (various references)

Spanish

amortizar (amortise, amortize, deaden, redeem). (various references)

Swedish

avbetala. (various references)

Turkish

parasını verip kovmak, tamamen ödemek (pay scot and lot, pay up), hesabını kapatmak, değmek (be worthy of, bear, brush, kiss, merit, pay, touch, worth), acısını çıkarmak (avenge, be revenged, compansate oneself for, get equal with smb., get even with, get one's own back, have one's revenge, pay back, pay out, reciprocate, requite, serve smb. out, take revenge for), öç almak (avenge oneself, be avenged, pay back, requite, retaliate, revenge oneself on smb., serve smb. out, take revenge, take vengeance on, take vengeance upon, wreak vengeance on smb.), çıkarmak (bare, belch, blank, bring out, bruit about, deduct, delete, derive, disconnect, dislocate, dislodge, dismantle, displace, divest, doff, draw off, draw out, drive out, drop, educe, eject, elicit, eliminate, emit, enact, enucleate, evolve, exclude, excogitate, excrete, exhale, exhaust, expel, expunge, extract, extricate, extrude, exude, foot, foot up, give forth, give off, haul up, hawk, issue, let out, make out, omit, order off, order out, oust, out, present, print out, provoke, publish, pull off, put off, put out, put up, reject, remove, rest, rout out, rout up, rule out, scratch, shoot out, slip off, spew forth, spew out, spew up, spit, start, stick out, strike, strike off, strike through, strip, strip off, subtract, take, take from, take off, take out, throw off, throw out, tide over, touch off, uncase, unfix, vent, void, vomit, winkle out, wipe out, wipe up, work out, wreak). (various references)

Ukrainian

розплата (forfeit, payoff, reckoning, wages), розплатитися, відплатити (pay back, reward), виплата (disbursement, payoff, payout), нагорода (award, bacon, distinction, guerdon, meed, payoff, premium, price, prize, reward, testimonial, tribute), звільняти робітників (lay off workers). (various references)

absolvas, absolve, absolvisset, absolvit, absolvo, soluta, soluti, solutis, solutum, solutus, solvam, solvant, solvas, solvat, solve, solvebat, solvebatur, solvens, solventes, solventibus, solventur, solverant, solvere, solveret, solverit, solveritis, solvet, solvetur, solvi, solvisti, solvit, solvite, solvitis, solvitur, solvunt. (various references)

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

Direct Anagrams: payoff.

-2 letters: ofay, yaff.

-3 letters: aff, fay, fop, foy, oaf, off, pay, pya, yap.

-4 letters: ay, fa, of, op, oy, pa, ya, yo.

+1 letter: payoffs, playoff.

+2 letters: playoffs.