paid

1. 1
   verb

   Simple past and past participle of pay.

   The company paid its workers early this month.

   Every outstanding bill was paid before the deadline.

   Note

   One spelling does three jobs: the simple past (they paid early), the perfect (they have paid) and the passive (the bill was paid). It keeps the i of Middle English paid rather than the y of pay, so the regular-looking payed is not the usual form. It carries every sense of the verb, including the intransitive one of being worth the effort: waiting paid in the end.

2. 2
   adjective

   Requiring payment to obtain or use; not provided free of charge.

   The museum offers paid tours led by expert guides.

   Access to the premium articles is paid, while the headlines stay free.

   Similarchargeable

   Oppositefree, gratis

   Note

   Here the participle has hardened into an adjective that names a price. It sits most naturally before a noun, as in paid service or a paid tour, and it does not grade: a thing is paid or free, never more paid. Its usual opposites are free and gratis, while nonfree and for-pay say the same thing more bluntly.

3. 3
   adjectiveslang

   Having a great deal of money; wealthy and well-off.

   After the startup sold, the founders were seriously paid.

   He acts paid, flashing designer clothes and a brand-new car.

   Similarloaded, rich, wealthy, minted, flush

   Oppositebroke, poor

   Note

   Slang that turns the passive on its head: someone who is paid in this sense has money, not a wage just received. Because "he was paid" can also be the plain passive of the past-tense verb, context does the work, and here it describes a lasting state of being rich. It belongs to casual, often coarse speech, so keep it out of formal writing.

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