pays 1 of 2

present tense third-person singular of pay
1
as in compensates
to give (someone) the sum of money owed for goods or services received we need to pay the cashier and then we can leave

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in meets
to give what is owed for you ought to pay that bill before it's overdue

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
4
as in yields
to produce as revenue an investment paying six percent

Synonyms & Similar Words

5

pays

2 of 2

noun

plural of pay

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pays
Verb
Whelan said that a costuming Easter egg in the play pays tribute to original Love Boat captain Gavin MacLeod. Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Sep. 2025 For professionals seeking meaningful work that pays well and makes a difference, the opportunities in 2025 are both diverse and enduring. Monica Sanders, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025 Tesla also said Musk's other companies — mainly SpaceX and xAI Holdings — now account for most of his wealth and therefore will command most of his attention unless Tesla pays him more. Robert Frank, CNBC, 11 Sep. 2025 Of course, not everyone pays their parking tickets. Scott Wartman, Cincinnati Enquirer, 10 Sep. 2025 Kaprizov, 28, is heading into his sixth season with the Wild and the final season of a five-year contract that pays him $9 million annually. Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 10 Sep. 2025 Medicaid typically pays lower rates for care than commercial insurance or Medicare, the federal program for people age 65 and older. Phil Galewitz, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025 While a sectorial collapse appears to have been averted with the current 19 percent figure, which is on par with neighboring rivals like Indonesia and Vietnam, the question of who pays for the additional duties is a question that continues to loom large. Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 9 Sep. 2025 The restaurant takes in substantial gross revenue, pays no rent and no electricity, and yet makes little or no profit. Steven Franck, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Sep. 2025
Noun
The state’s plan eliminates co-pays and removes income thresholds, making childcare free for all families. Jennifer Jay Palumbo, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025 While his premiums are very low, his deductible and co-pays for things like prescriptions for insulin equipment run hundreds of dollars per month. Chris Kenning, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025 The bill will also require people with incomes above the poverty line to pay out-of-pocket co-pays for most Medicaid services, such as lab tests or doctor visits. Nathaniel Weixel, The Hill, 4 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pays
Verb
  • A little over half of that burden will hit farmers directly in the form of falling retail prices, SBI said, unless the government compensates for the loss.
    Sriram Iyer, executive editor, CNBC-TV18, CNBC, 7 Aug. 2025
  • The compliance inherent to the finger effectively compensates for the inaccuracies in human actuation, leading to robust behavior.
    IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 18 Feb. 2022
Verb
  • Although the crushed velvet exteriors are the most eye-catching details of the shoes, there’s more to them than what meets the eye.
    Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Pokémon meets Animal Crossing Although a new mainline entry in the Pokémon series is due out this year, Nintendo isn’t letting that stop them from pushing out more games next year timed to the series’ 30th anniversary in Japan.
    Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • As evidenced by his Instagram, Schwarzenegger spends a lot of time with his famous family, and Champion does too.
    Arielle Tschinkel, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Start with the processes that are already broken—those high-volume, repetitive tasks where your team spends hours on work that adds little strategic value.
    David Zwick, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Simple arithmetic such as 355/113 could be calculated in place by selecting the text and pressing USE FRONT-CALC (Control-G), which yields the answer with a dotted underline to indicate the result of a computation.
    Cameron Kaiser, ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Within seconds, ChatGPT yields a list of essay ideas, plus examples and quotes to back them up.
    Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The transatlantic defense alliance employs the principle that an attack on one is an attack on all.
    Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Fruitist supplies over 12,500 retail stores across 28 countries—including Walmart, Whole Foods, and Costco—and employs about 1,200 people globally.
    Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • This is largely because cap charges associated with bonuses, unlike cap charges from base salaries, can be prorated across up to five years.
    Mike Sando, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2025
  • In terms of pay, salaries typically range from $75,000 to $120,000 in the US, and £55,000 to £85,000 in the UK.
    Andrew Fennell, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • More than 15% of all new car payments, including both loans and leases, are more than $1,000 a month, a record share, according to Experian.
    Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Berger also said that Brown would not have been on the train if Charlotte had enforced fare payments on light rail.
    Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images What To Know The program repays up to $20,000 in student loan debt over four years, according to HESAA.
    Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Pays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pays. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.

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