pay off

porter ses fruits, être payant

Donner de bons résultats qui justifient le temps ou l’argent consacré.

En anglais simple : If effort or a plan succeeds, it produces good results and is worth the time or cost.

• Your hard work will pay off.
• All that practice paid off during the match.
• Did their new strategy pay off?

Synonymes : succeed, bear fruit

Contraires : fail

Expressions courantes : pay off eventually, pay off handsomely

rembourser intégralement, solder

Rendre la totalité de l’argent dû pour un prêt ou une autre dette.

En anglais simple : To return all the money you owe for a loan or debt.

• I paid off my loan.
• They are saving to pay the mortgage off.
• Have you paid off your credit card debt?

Comment l'utiliser : pay off something (She paid off her student loan.); pay something off (We hope to pay it off next year.)

Synonymes : repay, settle, clear

Expressions courantes : pay off debt, pay off a loan, pay off a mortgage

finir de payer, rembourser le prêt de

Finir de rembourser le prêt lié à un bien, qui ne garantit alors plus la dette.

En anglais simple : To finish paying a loan for something, so the lender no longer has a claim on it.

• We paid off our car.
• She finally paid the house off this spring.
• How long will it take to pay off the boat?

Comment l'utiliser : pay off something (They paid off the house after twenty years.); pay something off (We paid the car off last month.)

Synonymes : pay for completely

Expressions courantes : pay off a car, pay off a house

soudoyer, corrompre

Donner secrètement de l’argent à quelqu’un pour obtenir son aide ou lui faire fermer les yeux sur une faute.

En anglais simple : To give someone money secretly so they help you or ignore something wrong.

• They paid off the guard.
• Someone had paid the witness off before the trial.
• Did the owner pay off the inspectors?

Comment l'utiliser : pay someone off (They paid the guard off to avoid an inspection.)

Synonymes : bribe, buy off

Expressions courantes : pay off someone, pay off officials

licencier en réglant les salaires

Mettre fin à l’emploi de quelqu’un en lui versant les sommes encore dues.

En anglais simple : To end someone’s employment and give them the money they are owed.

• The factory paid off its workers.
• They paid the crew off at the end of the voyage.
• Will the firm pay off more staff after the closure?

Comment l'utiliser : pay someone off (The company paid its temporary workers off when the project ended.)

Synonymes : dismiss, lay off

Contraires : hire

Expressions courantes : pay off workers, pay off staff, pay off someone

abattre

Pour un voilier, tourner sa proue en l’éloignant de la direction d’où vient le vent.

En anglais simple : If a sailing boat does this, its front turns away from the direction the wind comes from.

• The yacht began to pay off.
• The bow paid off as the wind changed.
• Let the boat pay off before adjusting the sail.

Synonymes : bear away, fall off

Contraires : head up

Expressions courantes : pay off slowly, pay off to leeward