bonus
Americannoun
-
something given or paid over and above what is due.
- Synonyms:
- gift, honorarium, reward
-
a sum of money granted or given to an employee, a returned soldier, etc., in addition to regular pay, usually in appreciation for work done, length of service, accumulated favors, etc.
-
something free, as an extra dividend, given by a corporation to a purchaser of its securities.
-
a premium paid for a loan, contract, etc.
-
something extra or additional given freely.
Every purchaser of a pound of coffee received a box of cookies as a bonus.
noun
-
something given, paid, or received above what is due or expected
a Christmas bonus for all employees
-
an extra dividend allotted to shareholders out of profits
-
insurance a dividend, esp a percentage of net profits, distributed to policyholders either annually or when the policy matures
-
a slang word for a bribe
Synonym Usage
Bonus, bounty, premium refer to something extra beyond a stipulated payment. A bonus is a gift to reward performance, paid either by a private employer or by a government: a bonus based on salary; a soldiers' bonus. A bounty is a public aid or reward offered to stimulate interest in a specific purpose or undertaking and to encourage performance: a bounty for killing wolves. A premium is usually something additional given as an inducement to buy, produce, or the like: a premium received with a magazine subscription. See also present 2.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of bonus
1765–75; < Latin: good
Explanation
A bonus is something extra, a benefit beyond what is expected. If you get a bonus at work, it could be extra money or another type of reward for a job well done. A bonus is usually extra financial compensation that is above and beyond an employee's normal base salary or hourly wage. Some other types of employee bonuses are stock options, gift cards, or extra paid time off. But a bonus doesn't have to be related to work. It can be any extra benefit — like a rebate from an insurance company for making no claims in a year. Or it can be something as simple as a warm smile from your favorite teacher as she returns your essay with an A+ on the top.
Vocabulary lists containing bonus
Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - High School
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
For the Amicus bonus episode, Mark unpacks acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing for the Justice Department’s top job, joined by Madiba Dennie of Balls and Strikes.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
Beatles tour bonus: Paul McCartney in his car on the phone with Ringo.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
Irish tries from Joe McCarthy and Hugo Keenan either side of the outstanding Damian McKenzie's score boosted the visitors' hopes of a losing and try bonus.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
But there’s another bonus, he said, because the heat storage can decouple the company from the volatility of the energy market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
“So, did you pick up the bonus code?” asked Kyle.
From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein
Four recent free-agent signings: Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker have a total annual salary of $130 million not including signing bonuses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
Many of these companies’ top executives are making millions, even tens of millions, of dollars on their options, restricted stock and bonuses.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026
They have asked for much bigger bonuses, tied to an AI boom that has brought greater riches to Hyundai and South Korea.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Some workers in Kitakami boast of bonuses that are "impossibly high" for the region, Hana told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
Mom said it was one of the bonuses of living at the LBJ Apartments, because we’d be able to pick up a little Spanish without even studying.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
