pay back
Britishverb
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to retaliate against
to pay someone back for an insult
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to give or do (something equivalent) in return for a favour, insult, etc
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to repay (a loan)
noun
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the return on an investment
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Also called: payback period. the time taken for a project to cover its outlay
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something done in order to gain revenge
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( as modifier )
payback killings
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Repay a debt or a loan, as in I'll pay you back next month .
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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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At the end of its life, a bond promises to pay back the principal invested, with interest payments doled out along the way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
“If they’re making $1 more than the average high-school graduate that’s probably not enough to pay back their student loans. It’s a starting point, it’s not where we want to end up.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
It would pay back investors using interest and loan payments from the program — not taxpayer money.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Restitution is an order to pay back the criminal’s gains to the victims of the crime.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026
He couldn’t even pay back Laura Friendly for his half if he wanted to.
From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
