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well-earned

British  

adjective

  1. fully deserved

    a well-earned rest

"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

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.

In that Peacock series, Elizabeth Banks’ Lindy Littlejohn is a best-selling author tired of diminishing her well-earned reputation to placate her husband, a bumbling scientist.

From Salon • Apr. 23, 2026

The devotion is well-earned: Smith can quote Jefferson verbatim and cites Seneca and Enlightenment philosophers without blinking.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

That, my friend, is a bigger and more complex question and answer, and I suggest, as part of your well-earned retirement, that you seek help for yourself.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 10, 2026

The well-earned rest came after Styles spent over a decade touring and releasing music, first with One Direction and later as a solo artist when he launched his own career in 2017.

From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026

After some well-earned fist-pumping, I unloaded the cells and dragged them back to the farm.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

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