wage earner
Americannoun
noun
-
a person who works for wages, esp as distinguished from one paid a salary
-
the person who earns money to support a household by working
Etymology
Origin of wage earner
First recorded in 1880–85
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.
“The lower-end wage earner has definitely been struggling for a while,” Wells Fargo finance chief Michael Santomassimo said last week.
From Barron's • Nov. 14, 2025
This is true for both spousal benefits when the higher wage earner is alive and for survivor benefits.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2025
"It's tough to lift the heavy materials, especially when there's pollution as I cough a lot when smoke gets in my lungs and my eyes burn," said the sole wage earner in his family.
From Reuters • Nov. 13, 2023
The median price of a Maui home is $1.2 million, putting a single-family home out of reach for the typical wage earner.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 12, 2023
Many of them get by by teaming up with another wage earner, a spouse or grown child.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
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.
