pay¹ (pā)

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[Middle English paien, from Old French paiier, from Late Latin pācāre, to appease, from Latin, to pacify, subdue, from pāx, pāc-, peace.]

verb: paid (pād), pay·ing, pays. 

transitive verb 

1. To give money to in return for goods or services rendered: pay the cashier.
2. To give (money) in exchange for goods or services: paid four dollars for a hamburger; paid an hourly wage.
3. To discharge or settle (a debt or obligation): paying taxes; paid the bill.
4. 1. To give recompense for; requite: a kindness that cannot be paid back.
   2. To give recompense to; reward or punish: I'll pay him back for his insults.
5. To bear (a cost or penalty, for example) in recompense: She paid the price for her unpopular opinions.
6. To yield as a return: a savings plan that paid six percent interest.
7. To afford an advantage to; profit: It paid us to be generous.
8. To give or bestow: paying compliments; paying attention.
9. To make (a visit or call).
10. To let out (a line or cable) by slackening.

intransitive verb 

1. To give money in exchange for goods or services.
2. To discharge a debt or obligation.
3. To bear a cost or penalty in recompense: You'll pay for this mischief!
4. To be profitable or worthwhile: It doesn't pay to get angry.

adjective 

1. Of, relating to, giving, or receiving payments.
2. Requiring payment to use or operate: a pay toilet.
3. Yielding valuable metal in mining: a pay streak.

noun 

1. The act of paying or state of being paid.
2. Money given in return for work done; salary; wages.
3. 1. Recompense or reward: Your thanks are pay enough.
   2. Retribution or punishment.
4. Paid employment: the workers in our pay.
5. A person considered with regard to his or her credit or reliability in discharging debts.

phrasal verbs

pay off

To pay the full amount on (a debt).

To effect profit: a bet that paid off poorly.

To get revenge for or on; requite.

To pay the wages due to (an employee) upon discharge.

Informal To bribe.

Nautical To turn or cause to turn (a vessel) to leeward.

pay out

To give (money) out; spend.

To let out (a line or rope) by slackening.

pay up

To give over the full monetary amount demanded.

idioms

pay (one's) dues

To earn a given right or position through hard work, long-term experience, or suffering: She paid her dues in small-town theaters before being cast in a Broadway play.

pay (one's) way

To contribute one's own share; pay for oneself.

pay the piper

To bear the consequences of something.

pay through the nose

To pay excessively.

pay² (pā)

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[Obsolete French peier, from Old French, from Latin picāre, from pix, pic-, pitch.]

transitive verb: payed or paid (pād), pay·ing, pays. 

To coat or cover (seams of a ship, for example) with waterproof material such as tar or asphalt.