pay back

verb

1. to retaliate against

   to pay someone back for an insult

2. to give or do (something equivalent) in return for a favour, insult, etc

3. to repay (a loan)

noun

1. 1. the return on an investment

   2. Also called: payback period. the time taken for a project to cover its outlay

2. 1. something done in order to gain revenge

   2. ( as modifier )

      payback killings

Idioms and Phrases

Repay a debt or a loan, as in I'll pay you back next month .

Also, pay back in someone's own coin . Revenge oneself, repay in kind, as in He thought he could get away with copying my plans, but I'll pay him back in his own coin . This expression refers to repaying a debt in exactly the same currency in which the money had been lent. [c. 1600]

Example Sentences

"They had worked so hard for Thailand. Now it's my time to pay back," he said.

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The court ordered them to pay back the $8.2 million to the state.

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Inflation, a tough job market, and higher borrowing costs have made it harder for them to pay back their debt.

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Capital One felt so good about how borrowers are paying back credit cards and auto loans that it released $760 million it had been holding back to cover potential losses.

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And that for all the food and drink spikes, the consumer was actually protected from the worst of it for a period - and now it is pay back time.

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Related Words

• adjust 
• compensate 
• recoup 
• redeem 
• reimburse 
• relinquish 
• remit 
• repay