Meaning & use
pay period
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
The fixed stretch of time, such as a week or a month, that one wage payment covers.
Grammar: Takes an or the: the current pay period; two pay periods.
Patterns
- the pay period ends on something
- hours worked in a pay period
Our pay period runs from the first to the last day of each month.
She worked forty-two hours during the last pay period.
If you start midweek, you will be paid only for the days left in that pay period.
Word forms
| plural | pay periods |
|---|
Common combinations
- biweekly pay period
- We are on a biweekly pay period, so I get paid every other Friday.
- end of the pay period
- Please submit your timesheet by the end of the pay period.
- current pay period
- Overtime in the current pay period will be added to your next check.
- during a pay period
- Sick days taken during a pay period are listed on your pay slip.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pay cycle
- Pay cycle stresses the repeating pattern of payments, while pay period names the particular span of time being paid for.
- payroll period
- Payroll period is more formal and is used mostly by accountants and HR departments rather than ordinary employees.
- billing period
- Billing period refers to the time covered by a bill you pay, not wages you receive.
Word family
Commonly confused: pay period or payday?
pay period vs payday
A payday is one date on which you are paid. A pay period is the whole stretch of time that the payment covers.
Practice
Choose the best word: Our ___ runs from the 1st to the 15th, and we are paid on the 20th.
Choose one answer.
A pay period is the span of time covered by a payment. Payday is only the date money arrives, so it does not fit with 'runs from ... to'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pay period”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.