wage
Americannoun
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Often wages. money that is paid or received for work or services, as by the hour, day, or week.
- Synonyms:
- remuneration, compensation, emolument, earnings
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Economics. Usually wages. the share of the products of industry received by labor for its work (as distinct from the share going to capital).
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(used with a singular or plural verb) Usually wages. recompense or return.
The wages of sin is death.
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Obsolete. a pledge or security.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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(often plural) payment in return for work or services, esp that made to workmen on a daily, hourly, weekly, or piece-work basis Compare salary
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( as modifier )
wage freeze
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(plural) economics the portion of the national income accruing to labour as earned income, as contrasted with the unearned income accruing to capital in the form of rent, interest, and dividends
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(often plural) recompense, return, or yield
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an obsolete word for pledge
Synonym Usage
See pay 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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wagesimple
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wagessimple
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have wagedperfect
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has wagedperfect
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am wagingprogressive
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are wagingprogressive
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is wagingprogressive
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have been wagingperfect progressive
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has been wagingperfect progressive
Past
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wagedsimple
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had wagedperfect
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was wagingprogressive
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were wagingprogressive
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had been wagingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wage
First recorded in 1275–1325; (noun) Middle English: “pledge, security,” from Anglo-French; Old French guage gage 1, from unattested Vulgar Latin wadium, from Germanic ( see wed); (verb) Middle English wagen “to pledge,” from Anglo-French wagier; Old French guagier, from unattested Vulgar Latin wadiāre, derivative of wadium
Explanation
If your job pays a good wage, it means that you earn a lot of money for the hard work you do. If you're not happy with your wage, you might have to wage war on your boss. Wage is one of those words whose verb and noun forms have entirely different meanings. A worker's wage is how much money she makes. But when you wage something, you carry it out: for example, a warmonger is someone whose primary goal is to wage wars. The word is of Germanic origin, and it's related to both gage and wed, with their underlying meanings of "to pledge."
Vocabulary lists containing wage
Labor Day Lexicon: Words That Put You To Work
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Unit 3: Compelling Evidence
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List 8
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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.
Roy, who has promised to turn the city attorney’s office into “the largest public interest law firm in the city,” targeting wage theft, tenant harassment and other issues, disputed Waldman’s assertion.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 22, 2026
That adds to a recent report from the bank showing rising after-tax wage growth for lower- and middle-income households.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 18, 2026
Meanwhile, the bottom portion of the “K-shaped” economy is working longer, with the number of hours rising 0.3% from last year, while taking home less, with wage growth cooling to 3.4% in May.
From Barron's • Jun. 17, 2026
Long term, it maintains above-benchmark allocation, as inflation and wage trends support corporate profitability.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 17, 2026
That came to almost eight dollars an hour—which my dad said was a lot more than I’d make minimum wage at McDonald’s.
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
