real wages

American  

[ree-uhl, reel] / ˈri əl, ril /

plural noun

Economics.

1. wages estimated not in money but in purchasing power.

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real wages British  

plural noun

1. economics wages evaluated with reference to their purchasing power rather than to the money actually paid Compare money wages

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real wages Cultural  

1. Wages adjusted for the prevailing level of consumer prices. (See also constant dollars.)

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Etymology

Origin of real wages

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The decrease in real wages is “a big turnaround from the past few years, when wages were growing well above inflation for most workers.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

Preliminary Shunto results signal solid pay increases, but real wages remain under pressure from inflation, now complicated by Middle East-driven energy shocks, Justin Feng and others say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

Americans with the lowest incomes saw their real wages fall in 2025, according to a study from the Economic Policy Institute, a think tank that analyzed census data.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 24, 2026

These range from the slowing economy, rising labor-market slack and stagnant real wages to the disinflationary — or deflationary — effect of artificial intelligence.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 5, 2026

From 2001-03 real wages fell and Brazil's economy   grew, on average, only 2.2% per year, as the country absorbed a   series of domestic and international economic shocks.

From The 2005 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency

Related Words

• net income