pay\ off

pay\ off
v. phr.
1. To pay the wages of.

The men were paid off just before quitting time, the last day before the holiday.

2. To pay and discharge from a job.

When the building was completed he paid off the laborers.

3. To hurt (someone) who has done wrong to you; get revenge on.

When Bob tripped Dick, Dick paid Bob off by punching him in the nose.

Syn.: pay back
4. informal To bring a return; make profit.

At first Mr. Harrison lost money on his investments, but finally one paid off.

5. informal To prove successful, rewarding, or worthwhile.

Ben's friendship with the old man who lived beside him paid off in pleasant hours and broadened interests.

John studied hard before the examination, and it paid off. He made an A.


Словарь американских идиом. — СПб., Изд-во "Лань". . 1997.

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  • pay off — {v. phr.} 1. To pay the wages of. * /The men were paid off just before quitting time, the last day before the holiday./ 2. To pay and discharge from a job. * /When the building was completed he paid off the laborers./ 3. To hurt (someone) who has …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • pay off — {v. phr.} 1. To pay the wages of. * /The men were paid off just before quitting time, the last day before the holiday./ 2. To pay and discharge from a job. * /When the building was completed he paid off the laborers./ 3. To hurt (someone) who has …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • pay off — vt 1: to pay (a debt or credit) in full the loan was paid off 2: bribe Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • pay off — (something) to pay all of a debt. It took her six years to pay off her student loan. I guess I can afford a new car, but it s a lot of money and it s not easy to pay it off …   New idioms dictionary

  • pay-off — s.m.inv. ES ingl. 1. TS pubbl. frase finale di un annuncio o di un comunicato pubblicitario che riassume ed evidenzia il messaggio di vendita del prodotto 2. TS econ. risultato economico di un operazione 3. TS sport obiettivo che si intende… …   Dizionario italiano

  • pay off — ► pay off 1) dismiss with a final payment. 2) informal yield good results. Main Entry: ↑pay …   English terms dictionary

  • pay|off — «PAY F, OF», noun, adjective. –n. 1. the act of paying wages. 2. the time of such payment. 3. a) the returns, as from an enterprise or specific action; result: »You will see the payoff immediately…without need for specially trained operators… …   Useful english dictionary

  • pay off — (someone) to give someone money illegally to get them to do what you want. The pair had paid off local police to protect their drug selling operation …   New idioms dictionary

  • pay-off — index commission (fee) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • pay-off — ► NOUN informal 1) a payment, especially a bribe. 2) the return on investment or on a bet. 3) a final outcome …   English terms dictionary

  • pay off — verb 1. yield a profit or result (Freq. 4) His efforts finally paid off • Hypernyms: ↑yield, ↑pay, ↑bear • Verb Frames: Something s 2. eliminate by paying off ( …   Useful english dictionary

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