earnings
Americannoun
plural noun
-
money or other payment earned
-
the profits of an enterprise
Etymology
Origin of earnings
before 1050; Middle English erning, Old English earning, earnung merit, pay. See earn 1, -ing 1, -s 3
Explanation
Earnings are the amount of money you make from doing a job. You'll be a lot more excited about babysitting when you learn your earnings will be more than generous. Most earnings come from work that you've done, although money you earn from an investment can also be called earnings. Any financial profit or gain you make go into the earnings category, since you earn that money, whether through work, luck, or intelligence. The Proto-Germanic root, *aznon, means "do harvest work."
Vocabulary lists containing earnings
One Idea, Part 1
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Century 21 Accounting, 9e, Chapters 11-14
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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.
“That’s an indication of stress,” Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said on the retailer’s earnings call.
From MarketWatch • May 25, 2026
But lofty corporate earnings and AI-driven tech enthusiasm have encouraged investors to look past the inflation risks, with bellwether US indexes trading at record highs.
From Barron's • May 25, 2026
“Both domestic and foreign institutional buying amid continued earnings upgrades” have been supporting Taiwan stocks, Goldman Sachs analysts said in a note.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
“Generally speaking, the strength of the earnings season overall has been remarkable,” she said.
From MarketWatch • May 25, 2026
She continued to send what money she could, chiefly her own earnings.
From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty
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.
