lucrative
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of lucrative
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English lucratif, from Middle French, from Latin lucrātīvus “gainful,” from lucrāt(us) “profited” (past participle of lucrārī “to make a profit, gain by economy”; see lucre) + -īvus -ive
Explanation
Use lucrative to refer to a business or investment that makes money. While your parents might want you to pursue a lucrative career, you're committed to your plan of becoming a professional mime. This adjective is from the Latin word lucrum, meaning "profit." In Latin, lucrum also meant "greed," a negative sense preserved in the English phrase filthy lucre, or "shameful profit or gain." But the word lucrative doesn't carry a similar sense of shame — if your lawn-mowing job proves lucrative over the summer, you might be able to buy yourself a used car.
Vocabulary lists containing lucrative
Grade 10, List 2
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Hidden Figures
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Fast Food Nation
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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.
In fact, the incentive is to keep pushing forward no matter consequence, in the hopes of dominating the market with the most powerful AI thing, meaning the most lucrative as well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
Walters of Natchez, Miss., who left a career in computer science to pursue a more lucrative calling—manufacturing and installing seamless gutters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
The broadcasters traded freedom for free licenses and a lucrative, protected market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
The England defender, who joined Spurs as a youngster more than a decade earlier, had lucrative offers from Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
That health kick of hers made the school take the good stuff from the vending machines and made my business very lucrative.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
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.
