Meaning & use
gross paycheck
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountablebusinessfinanceAmerican
the total amount of money you earn from a job before taxes and other costs are taken out
Grammar: Countable: you can say a gross paycheck or two gross paychecks.
Patterns
- earn a gross paycheck
- a gross paycheck of $2,000
- before deductions
My gross paycheck is $3,000, but after taxes I only get about $2,200.
The company lists your gross paycheck on your pay stub.
She was surprised by how much smaller her take-home pay was than her gross paycheck.
Word forms
| plural | gross paychecks |
|---|
Common combinations
- gross paycheck amount
- The gross paycheck amount is shown at the top of the statement.
- earn a gross paycheck
- He earns a gross paycheck of $4,000 a month.
- gross paycheck vs. net paycheck
- The difference between your gross paycheck and your net paycheck is the deductions.
- monthly gross paycheck
- Her monthly gross paycheck is higher than last year.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gross pay
- More common in British English and often used in payroll contexts; it means the same as gross paycheck.
- gross income
- A wider term that can include money from sources other than a job, not just wages.
- salary
- Refers to a fixed regular payment, usually expressed as an annual amount, and may be gross or net.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: gross paycheck or net paycheck?
gross paycheck vs net paycheck
Net paycheck is the amount you actually take home after taxes and other deductions, while gross paycheck is the full amount before anything is taken out.
Practice
Your gross paycheck is $2,500, and $600 is taken out for taxes and benefits. What is your net paycheck?
Choose one answer.
Net paycheck is what you receive after deductions, so $2,500 minus $600 is $1,900. $2,500 is the gross paycheck, and $3,100 would be adding the deduction instead of subtracting it.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gross paycheck”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.