There are very few things in the world that are
free. If you want something, you usually have to pay. There are several ways to pay. We pay people. We pay for products or services. Or we pay by credit card, by check or in cash. In
other words, we pay somebody for something somehow.
For example, after shopping at a clothing
store, you could say:
I paid the shop assistant.
I paid for the jeans.
I paid in cash.
Or any
combination of the above:
I paid the shop assistant for the jeans.
I paid the shop assistant in cash.
I paid for the jeans in cash.
I paid the shop assistant for the jeans in cash.
Take note
of the word order in the complement: we pay people, then the product or service,
then the form of payment.
If you bought something at very little cost,
you could brag [1] that
you paid
peanuts [2] for
it. On the other hand, if you bought something that was very expensive and you
want to show off [3], you could
boast [4]
that you paid top dollar. However, if you bought something that was
excessively expensive, you could exaggerate that you paid through the nose, or
that you paid an arm or a leg.
If you want to say that you bought or achieved something
yourself, without any help, you could say you paid your own
way. Nobody did me any favors, I
had to pay my own way to get to the top. Likewise, if you
paid a membership fee, you could say that you paid your dues, which is also
an expression for having earned some special right because you have worked hard
for a long time. For many years, she has sacrificed
herself for this company; she’s definitely paid her dues and deserves a
promotion. Obviously, if you pay what something costs, you pay
the price. But paying the price for
something can also mean suffering the consequences for one’s actions, as well
as the expression paying the piper [5].
He smoked a pack a day, and now he’s paying the price.
As you can see above, you can pay for things
that aren’t products or services. You can also pay without using money. For
example, if you should listen to someone, you should pay attention to them.
And if you should follow the advice they give you, you should pay
heed to them. If you want to show admiration or praise someone, you can
pay
them a compliment. Or when you greet someone you admire, you can pay your
respects to them. Or when that person passes away, you can pay your last respects to them. If you
publicly recognize someone’s worth, you pay tribute to them, or pay them
homage. The Oscar’s Lifetime
Achievement Award pays tribute to an actor’s brilliant career.
Not surprisingly, there are several pay phrasal
verbs. If you pay out money, you give it to people. The company paid out dividends to its shareholders. If you
owe money to someone, you might have to pay up the full amount, and pay off what remains of a debt. They had to pay up
the rent or leave. They paid off the last installment on their mortgage [6]. However, if
you pay
someone off, you bribe [7]
them. To guarantee a favorable
vote, the company paid the politician off. On the other hand, if something pays off, it means
it has succeeded. The hard work you do
now will pay off in the future. There’s also pay
back, which means returning what you owe someone. How can I ever pay you back for all you’ve done for me? But
it can also mean getting revenge. I’ll pay you back
for what you’ve done to me!
Regardless
of who, what or how you pay, you can at least be satisfied on pay
day, the day you are paid your wages!
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