gainful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of gainful
Explanation
When something is gainful, it is profitable. In other words, it benefits or rewards the person who is doing it. You are most likely to come across the word gainful followed by employment. For some reason, most writers use this adjective to describe the working world, and the idea that a job provides a benefit to the worker — usually, in the form of money. Occasionally, you'll see other words replace employment, but they will still mean "work." The root of gainful is the Old French gaaignier, "to earn or gain," and also "to work in the fields or cultivate land."
Vocabulary lists containing gainful
The Bluest Eye
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Because They Marched
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Sadie
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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.
First of all, she is eligible for some amount of part-time work as long as it doesn’t exceed the Substantial Gainful Activity standards set by the Social Security Administration.
From Slate • Oct. 13, 2022
The Gainful Solutions lobbying firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 29, 2019
The issue isn’t limited to the United States: Gainful employment rates for autistic people remain comparatively low in a number of other nations, including the United Kingdom and Australia.
From Salon • Jul. 12, 2018
But if ED is successful in managing Gainful Employment without discouraging a greater diversity of credentials and inhibiting innovation in higher education, I’ll eat my hat and my kilt.
From Forbes • May 13, 2015
Gainful pursuits were opened up to them, adding training in ordered occupation and self-support.
From Mobilizing Woman-Power by Blatch, Harriot Stanton
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.
