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

All this for a team with a $370+ million payroll. —Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026

The number of employees on payrolls dropped 11,000, the biggest fall since November and double the decline seen in February, tax data published by the Office for National Statistics showed on Tuesday. —Tom Rees, Bloomberg, 21 Apr. 2026

Those changes created reserves in the Social Security trust funds, which have helped make up the difference since payroll taxes alone stopped covering full program costs around 2010. —Martha Shedden, Fortune, 21 Apr. 2026

Capital gets harder to raise, risk becomes personal and payroll gets heavier. —Seth Yudof, Rolling Stone, 21 Apr. 2026

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