payroll

noun

pay·​roll ˈpā-ˌrōl 

1

: a paymaster's or employer's list of those entitled to pay and of the amounts due to each

2

: the sum necessary for distribution to those on a payroll

also : the money to be distributed

Examples of payroll in a Sentence

They cut him from their payroll.

He's the manager of a baseball team with a $50 million payroll.

Businesses are keeping their payrolls low by embracing new technologies.

Recent Examples on the Web

Indeed, nonfarm payrolls growth has slowed to a crawl and the level of job openings is at a multiyear low. —Jeff Cox, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2025

Most of the payroll taxes collected for Social Security and Medicare don’t get set aside for the future. —Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Sep. 2025

Under his watch, the Mets’ payroll has ranked fourth, first, first, second and second. —Barry M. Bloom, Sportico.com, 24 Sep. 2025

The researchers used data from the largest payroll provider in the United States, Automatic Data Processing (ADP), to gain up-to-date employment and earning data for millions of workers across industries, locations, and age groups. —Gwendolyn Rak, IEEE Spectrum, 24 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1740, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing payroll

• payroll deduction
• payroll tax

Rhymes for payroll

• bankroll
• bedroll
• borehole
• cajole
• catchpole
• charcoal
• condole
• control
• dipole
• downhole
• enroll
• extol

Kids Definition

payroll

noun

pay·​roll ˈpā-ˌrōl 

1

: a list of persons entitled to receive pay with the amounts due to each

2

: the amount of money necessary to pay those on a payroll