salary

American  

[sal-uh-ree] / ˈsæl ə ri /

noun

• salaries
  plural

1. a fixed compensation periodically paid to a person for regular work or services.

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salary British  

/ ˈsælərɪ /

noun

1. a fixed regular payment made by an employer, often monthly, for professional or office work as opposed to manual work Compare wage

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verb

1. (tr) to pay a salary to

Usage

What is a salary? A salary is a fixed, regular payment in exchange for work. This is different from earning a fee that depends on how many hours you work (earning a fixed rate per hour) or how much work you do, sometimes called piecework. When you earn a salary, it is usually stated as the amount of money you will receive in one year for doing the work (before any taxes are paid). You will then be paid in equal amounts each pay period over the course of that year, even when you are on a paid vacation. How often you are paid will vary from company to company, with every other week and twice a month being most common. To salary someone is to pay them a salary. A salaried employee is someone who is paid a salary instead of paid another way, such as paid by the hour. Example: How can they expect me to live my best life when I’m paid on such a low salary?

Synonym Usage

See pay ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• salaryless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• salaries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of salary

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English salarie, from Anglo-French, from Latin salārium “money given to soldiers to buy salt, salt money.” See sal, -ary

Compare meaning

How does salary compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• stipend vs. salary

Explanation

The pay or wages you earn for doing your job is called your salary. You might prefer your low-paying job to one with a higher salary because you have so much fun with your co-workers. Salary comes from the Latin word salarium, which also means "salary" and has the root sal, or "salt." In ancient Rome, it specifically meant the amount of money allotted to a Roman soldier to buy salt, which was an expensive but essential commodity. Today, salt is an inexpensive purchase at the grocery store, and your salary is certainly to be paid in your country's currency.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

salary salaries

Grogan, 48 years old, will receive an annual base salary of $900,000, a $550,000 sign-on payment and an annual bonus with a target of 100% of his base pay.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

These sentiments are reflected by Joan, who desperately wants more for her daughter than she’s been able to provide on her own teacher’s salary.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

Unlike your role or your salary, though, you have little to no control over how others act.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

They discussed how a "difficulty in attracting high calibre and younger candidates is an issue that needs addressed" adding that the "salary is not attractive".

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

The Vatican, unable to burn Sarpi, burned Sarpi’s books instead; the Venetian Senate promptly doubled his salary.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

Rio prosecutors charged Flávio in 2020 with running a scheme to skim the salaries of legislative aides, a case later closed after key evidence was thrown out.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

The artificial-intelligence boom has pushed the bruising race for housing into overdrive—a lack of supply is colliding with sky-high AI salaries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Nela Richardson, chief economist at the large payroll processor ADP, said people who switch jobs have seen a notable bump-up in salaries.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026

The company’s board also rewarded Edison executives with higher salaries and bonuses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

Because these enforcers received pitiful salaries and were prized for being quick draws, it’s not surprising that the boundary between good lawmen and bad lawmen was porous.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Related Words

• earnings
• fee
• income
• pay
• payroll
• stipend
• wage