pay off
verb- To bribe, especially to deter oversight. · I thought the guards would give us trouble, but apparently he had paid them off.
- To become worthwhile; to produce a net benefit. · Her years of Spanish classes finally paid off when she found herself in Mexico and realized she could communicate with people.
- To pay back; to repay. · He paid off the loan three months early.
- To pay back (repay) the entirety of a loan, thereby effecting the release of a lien on (the thing that was financed). · This contract requires you to pay off the car by 2025.
- To pay and discharge (an employee).
- To fall to leeward, as the head of a vessel under sail.
From the library
“Because she had the money there with which to pay off the brokers.”
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