Definition of payback
1 : requital
2 : a return on an investment equal to the original capital outlay; also : the period of time elapsed before an investment is recouped
From the M-W Editors
Examples of payback in a Sentence
They beat our team last year, so we've got to beat them this year as payback.
we are hoping to get payback for the humiliating defeat we suffered at the hands of our rivals during our last matchup
Recent Examples of payback from the Web
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Simpson's lawyer, Yale Galanter, was concerned the jurors might be tempted to be harsher in their decision making, as a kind of payback for the not guilty verdict in Simpson's criminal murder trial.
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The flip side is that support from social media could result in payback of a kind beyond potential compensation for damages.
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Even without a bankruptcy filing, one option for the city could be to renegotiate the payback terms of Hartford's outstanding debt.
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Game notes: Everyone in a Tigers uniform today should be out for some payback.
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The payback was just over $251.6 million, an increase of $1.6 million over the prior fiscal year, the lottery reported.
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The bank had failed in 2014 and 2012, significantly setting back its payback plans. ...
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On Tuesday, Willie Taggart and his coaching staff delivered a little payback, snagging the commitment of Scout four-star athlete Tre'Shaun Harrison.
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Arizona State at Texas Tech (Sept. 16): The Red Raiders seek payback against a team that put 68 points on them in last year’s loss.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'payback.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of payback
1718
PAYBACK Defined for English Language Learners
payback
playDefinition of payback for English Language Learners
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: punishment for something that was done in the past
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: an amount of money that you receive after investing in something and that is equal to or greater than the amount of money that you originally invested
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: the amount of time that passes before invested money is returned or before money that is owed is paid
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