earnings
Americannoun
plural noun
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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
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Century 21 Accounting, 9e, Chapters 11-14
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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.
For example, a stock with a P/E of 20 may appear expensive on its own — but if its earnings are expected to grow at 20% annually, its PEG ratio would be 1.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
In its second-quarter earnings report Tuesday, the Swedish streamer called it a “milestone no audio streaming service has ever reached.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Some players can command big commercial deals outside rugby, and these deals will eclipse their club earnings multiple times over.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
The fourth reason Lee gave is that just over halfway through second-quarter earnings season, the S&P 500’s earnings-per-share estimates for next year have risen by $7, lowering forward price-to-earnings ratios.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
At any rate it would have cost him most of his year’s earnings to buy Maddie one year of flying lessons.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
