payback

noun

pay·​back ˈpā-ˌbak 

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

Synonyms of payback

• revenge
• retaliation
• retribution

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 on the Web

The payback could come in the draft as the third running back taken in the top 10 in the past four years. —ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026

The angry ocean off Scituate (as pictured above) is claiming payback with more than 5,400 homes left in the dark. —Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald, 24 Feb. 2026

If the administration does indeed leave it up to the CIT to provide a protocol for paybacks, the court could potentially take several months to respond. —Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 24 Feb. 2026

Capital expenditures for supplier decarbonization projects are often delayed because of long payback periods that suppliers cannot handle alone. —Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 16 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1935, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing payback

• payback time

Rhymes for payback

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback