honorarium

[on-uh-rair-ee-uhm]

noun

plural

honorariums, honoraria 

1. a payment in recognition of acts or professional services for which custom or propriety forbids a price to be set.

   The mayor was given a modest honorarium for delivering a speech to our club.

2. a fee for services rendered by a professional person.

honorarium

/ ˌɒnəˈrɛərɪəm /

noun

1. a fee paid for a nominally free service

Word History and Origins

Origin of honorarium¹

1650–60; < Latin honōrārium fee paid on taking office, noun use of neuter of honōrārius honorary

Word History and Origins

Origin of honorarium¹

C17: from Latin: something presented on being admitted to a post of _honour

When To Use

What does honorarium mean?

An honorarium is a payment for special, professional services that don’t technically require compensation or for which payment isn’t customarily given.An honorarium is usually given as an appreciative gesture for services outside of one’s normal job—it’s not a salary.More generally, it can refer to a one-time fee paid to a professional for their services.The correct plural of honorarium can be either honorariums or honoraria. Technically speaking, honoraria is the Latin-based plural form of honorarium. (Many other Latin-derived words can be pluralized in the same way, but many are rarely used, such as stadia as the plural for stadium.)Example: I was paid a modest honorarium for the summer poetry workshop that I led.