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premium

[pree-mee-uhm]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR premium ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

adjective

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RELATED WORDS

dividend, fee, value, stock, prime, superior, choice, gravy, regard, perk, plum, extra, guerdon, appreciation, recompense, boon, bounty, percentage, reward, store

Idioms

    at a premium,
    1. at an unusually high price.
    2. in short supply; in demand: Housing in that area is at a premium.

Origin of premium

First recorded in 1595–1605, premium is from the Latin word praemium profit, reward
Related formsnon·pre·mi·um, nounsu·per·pre·mi·um, adjective, noun

Synonyms for premium

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR premium ON THESAURUS.COM
2. reward. See bonus.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for premium

Contemporary Examples of premium

Historical Examples of premium

  • If she gits a premium for puttin' up gardin-sass, I'll warrant there'll be a to-do.

    Meadow Grass

    Alice Brown

  • Also, a premium can be contracted for, in the way of free association, for skilled labour.

    Freeland

    Theodor Hertzka

  • Although why should there be such a premium placed on intelligence, he wondered.

  • Now, good food is cheap while skilled labor is at a premium.

  • My dear father bought them—I should not be surprised to learn that he bought them at a premium.

    The Market-Place

    Harold Frederic

British Dictionary definitions for premium

premium

noun

an amount paid in addition to a standard rate, price, wage, etc; bonus
the amount paid or payable, usually in regular instalments, for an insurance policy
the amount above nominal or par value at which something sells
  1. an offer of something free or at a specially reduced price as an inducement to buy a commodity or service
  2. (as modifier)a premium offer
a prize given to the winner of a competition; award
US an amount sometimes charged for a loan of money in addition to the interest
great value or regardto put a premium on someone's services
a fee, now rarely required, for instruction or apprenticeship in a profession or trade
at a premium
  1. in great demand or of high value, usually because of scarcity
  2. above par

Word Origin for premium

C17: from Latin praemium prize, booty, reward
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
Word Origin and History for premium
n.

c.1600, "reward given for a specific act," from Latin praemium "reward, profit derived from booty," from prae- "before" (see pre-) + emere "to buy," originally "to take" (see exempt (adj.)). Insurance sense is 1660s, from Italian premio. Adjectival sense of "superior in quality" is first attested 1925, originally in reference to butter.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with premium

premium

see at a premium; put a premium on.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.