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  • minimum wage
    minimum wage
    noun
    the lowest wage payable to employees in general or to designated employees as fixed by law or by union agreement.
  • minimum-wage
    minimum-wage
    adjective
    of or relating to a minimum wage.
Synonyms

minimum wage

1 American  

noun

  1. the lowest wage payable to employees in general or to designated employees as fixed by law or by union agreement.

minimum-wage 2 American  
[min-uh-muhm-weyj] / ˈmɪn ə məmˈweɪdʒ /

adjective

  1. of or relating to a minimum wage.

    minimum-wage demands.

  2. paid or earning a minimum wage.

    a minimum-wage worker.

  3. paying a minimum wage.

    a minimum-wage job.
minimum wage British  

noun

  1. the lowest wage that an employer is permitted to pay by law or union contract

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
minimum wage Cultural  

  1. The lowest legal hourly wage.

Etymology

Origin of minimum wage

First recorded in 1855–60

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.

Announcing the new minimum wage package on Thursday, she said it was "the most significant increase in recent years" but acknowledged that it was still "not enough."

From Barron's • May 1, 2026

Venezuela's acting president Delcy Rodriguez on Thursday hiked the minimum wage package by 26.3 percent, to $240, in an attempt to quell growing discontent over difficult living conditions.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Including housing deductions, employers can now pay H-2A workers $13.90 an hour, significantly below California’s minimum wage of $16.90 an hour.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

Ms. Rodríguez told the nation in an April 8 economic speech that to fight inflation she will approve only a “responsible” minimum wage increase on International Workers’ Day, May 1.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026

She worked at a fast-food restaurant, rising to assistant manager but never making much more than minimum wage.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

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.