paycheck

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableAmerican

   The regular payment of wages or salary that an employer gives an employee, or the printed check or slip that shows it.

   Grammar: Usually countable: this month's paycheck, two paychecks. British English prefers 'pay packet' or 'wages'.

   Patterns

   • receive a paycheck
   • live from paycheck to paycheck

   My first paycheck from the bakery covered rent and groceries.

   The company moved to depositing every paycheck directly into workers' accounts.

   She checked her paycheck and noticed a mistake in the overtime.

2. 2nouncountableinformalfigurative

   A person's job or income seen as the means by which they live.

   Grammar: Often figurative and singular: a steady paycheck.

   Patterns

   • a steady paycheck
   • earn a paycheck

   After years of freelance work he wanted a steady paycheck.

   Many families depend on a single paycheck.

   The film wasn't important to him; it was just a paycheck.

Word forms

Common combinations

live paycheck to paycheck

Rising rents mean many households live paycheck to paycheck.

a steady paycheck

Teaching gave her a steady paycheck while she wrote at night.

direct-deposit paycheck

His direct-deposit paycheck arrives every other Friday.

cash a paycheck

He cashed his paycheck at the bank on the corner.

collect a paycheck

Some executives collect a paycheck without ever visiting the office.

Synonyms and how they differ

salary

Salary is a fixed yearly figure, usually for office or professional work, while paycheck is the actual payment you receive each period.

wages

Wages are hourly or weekly earnings for manual or shift work, and the word describes the pay itself rather than one payment.

pay packet

Pay packet is the British equivalent and sounds natural in the UK but unusual in the US.

income

Income covers all money coming in, including investments, whereas paycheck is only what an employer pays.

Word family

pay verb

to give money in exchange for work or goods

payroll noun

a company's list of employees and the money paid to them

paycheque noun

the British spelling of paycheck

payday noun

the day wages are paid

Commonly confused: paycheck or pay stub?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “paycheck”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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