pays off

present tense third-person singular of pay off

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 off The obvious effort that Pascal spent practicing the cello pays off in the scenes where Alex intensely plays the instrument for his own private reasons, as if asking the same thing of himself. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 2 Oct. 2026 Why tracking business expenses matters Tracking expenses pays off in several ways. — Carson Brunson, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026 This opaqueness from earlier in the season pays off in the form of John recounting the brutal methods the Manhunter used to decimate this planet, involving a fear gas that made people kill one another and jump to their deaths. — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2026 Quarterly reporting cycles do not reward discipline that pays off over a longer horizon than a single reporting period. — Hiren Dhaduk, Forbes.com, 24 Sep. 2026 And despite the reputation, not every bet pays off for Moody. — Rebecca Rosman, NPR, 14 Sep. 2026 Whether that trade actually pays off depends on your vehicle, your driving habits and how the numbers line up against real repair-cost data. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pays off
Verb
  • All four embrace their Crew-13 designation that pays homage in their mission patch to Apollo 13.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Murphy executive produces both series while shepherding his slate under the overall deal at 20th TV, which pays his overhead.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 2 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • In one of the film’s most madcap and darkly comedic moments, Linda bribes her daughter with the promise of a pet hamster — who turns out to be a biter, desperate to escape its box.
    — Rachel Brodsky, Rolling Stone, 8 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • When backed by the federal Hydrogen Production Tax Credit, which pays up to $3 per kilogram of clean fuel, these factory installations become viable immediately.
    — Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 23 Sep. 2026
  • If approved, the company pays up to the plan’s coverage limit.
    — Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • In emergency decisions, by contrast, the president has a much stronger track record of wins.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The pool has shallow areas for little ones to play in, and the Opium Spa offers treatments tailored to kids and teens.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Some determine whether a firm meets baseline requirements; others are weighted to determine its place in the final ranking.
    — Kelli Grant, CFP®,Riley de León, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The audience meets Carrie, meek and childlike, on her first day of school.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Balakrishnan, however, cautioned against viewing the issue simply through the lens of who buys the oil, stressing the importance of maintaining freedom of navigation through international waterways.
    — Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Fitzgerald draws the whole class map into the geography—East Egg, where the old money summers, and West Egg across the bay, where Gatsby’s new fortune buys a mansion but never quite buys in.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Artificial plays like a modern-day parable in which the trickster god seduces the innocent.
    — E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Diaz centers music as the emotional vehicle that provides a philosophical structure for the character tropes and in turn psychologically seduces the audience to internalize certain ideas of social dynamics.
    — Damaly Gonzalez, ARTnews.com, 30 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Pays off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pays%20off. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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