self-employed

American  

[self-em-ploid, self-] / ˈsɛlf ɛmˈplɔɪd, ˌsɛlf- /

adjective

1. earning one's living directly from one's own profession or business, as a freelance writer or artist, rather than as an employee earning salary or commission from another.

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self-employed British  

adjective

1. earning one's living in one's own business or through freelance work, rather than as the employee of another

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Usage

What does self-employed mean? Self-employed means earning one's main income by getting paid directly for one’s work, such as by owning one's own business, as opposed to being an employee and getting paid by an employer.When people describe themselves as self-employed, it typically means that this is their primary way of earning income, and that they do it full-time—as opposed to working as an employee and doing freelance work on the side, for example.The term self-employed is often used by and applied to people who consider themselves business owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs.Self-employed is sometimes used to collectively refer to self-employed people, as in This program is intended to help the self-employed. The state of being self-employed is self-employment.Example: I love being self-employed—my boss is amazing.

Other Word Forms

• self-employment noun

Etymology

Origin of self-employed

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Many self-employed, private sector and informal workers are barely hanging on.

From Barron's

The tax break isn’t for wage workers; it’s for the self-employed and business owners.

From MarketWatch

Tax bands in Scotland are different, and self-employed workers are taxed differently.

From BBC

It might be that being self-employed is not the best option for your boyfriend if he needs hospitalization every year for weeks at a time.

From MarketWatch

For Mikayla Tencer, being self-employed already meant juggling higher taxes, irregular income and the constant pressure of finding her own health insurance.

From Los Angeles Times