verb · neutral
pay
/peɪ/PAY
Band 6-7speakingtask2
to give money in exchange for something; to give attention
Examples
“You should pay attention when the lecturer explains the method.”
“Who will pay for the renovation?”
“She paid the fine online to avoid a queue.”
Band 8 sentence
“Policymakers should pay greater attention to long-term environmental costs rather than short-term gains.”
Collocations
- pay attention
- pay for
- pay the bill
- pay a fine
Word family
pay verb (base)pays verb (3rd sg)paying verb (gerund)paid verb (past simple)paid verb (past participle)
Common mistakes
He payed the bill yesterday.→He paid the bill yesterday.
Make attention to the speaker.→Pay attention to the speaker.
Say it for a higher band
5give money→6pay→7+pay
Synonyms
settle
compensate
Easily confused
spend
“She paid for the ticket online.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Irregular forms
Learn it with its set