idiom (phrasal verb) · neutral
pay off
UK/peɪ ˈɒf/US/peɪ ˈɔːf/PAY·off
speakingtask2
to produce a successful result or to be worthwhile after some effort
Examples
“All her hard work paid off when she got the scholarship.”
“Investing early usually pays off in the long run.”
“His patience paid off: the client finally signed the contract.”
Band 8 sentence
“Although the initial costs were high, the restructuring paid off by increasing productivity and profit margins.”
Collocations
- pay off in the long run
- paid off handsomely
Word family
pay off phrasal verbpaid off verb (past)
Common mistakes
pay for→pay off
be paid off→pay off
Say it for a higher band
5get results→6prove worthwhile→7+pay off
Synonyms
prove worthwhile
Easily confused
pay for
“If you make bad choices now, you will pay for them later.”
Related words
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