pays up

present tense third-person singular of pay up
as in pays
to give what is owed for for once our bills are all paid up

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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 up Phillips’ job, which pays up to $264,000 a year, could be the first test. Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 9 Aug. 2026 By contrast, Social Security pays up to $62,172 a year in 2026. Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 16 July 2026 Under current rules, each venue pays up to $15 million annually. Christopher Damien, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026 The SoonerSafe Rebate Program pays up to 75% of the cost of a new safe room, up to $3,000. Dale Denwalt, Oklahoman, 6 Mar. 2026 Norton, his interest piqued, pays up to discover there is more like it at Ox Lake, 600 miles farther north in the open tundra known as the Barren Grounds. Malcolm Forbes, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2026 In the most severe cases, the state pays up to $86,000 annually for a person’s home care, Reiskin said. Meg Wingerter, Denver Post, 20 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pays up
Verb
  • Giu pays Father Joe a visit and gets infected with the same virus after being lured into the confession box.
    Damon Wise, Deadline, 6 Sep. 2026
  • In her 2015 memoir, Steinem recounts her dynamic, nomadic career as a writer and activist, and pays vivid homage to the people, places, and conversations that shaped her.
    Mary Lawrence Ware, semafor.com, 4 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Being able to bring directing ideas into the writing itself, and getting a handle on the complex psychological stakes the writers had built in, so they could be properly showcased later, saves a lot of time and usually pays off.
    Roberto Prieto, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Becoming a regular pays off more than any one-off negotiation.
    Lauren Schuster, Sacbee.com, 1 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Pays up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pays%20up. Accessed 13 Sep. 2026.

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