reward

Pluralrewards

Formsrewards, rewarding, rewarded

1. 1
   nouncountable

   Something of value given to a person in return for an act, especially good work or a service.

   Employees who exceed their targets receive a cash reward at the end of the year.

   The airline offers rewards such as free flights to its most frequent travelers.

   Similarpayment, recompense, meed

   Oppositepunishment

   Note

   The noun shares its ancestry with regard. Both reached English through Old French from re- plus warder, "to guard, keep," a verb whose Germanic roots lie in guarding and defending. In use it sits beside payment and recompense, but it suggests something given in acknowledgment of an act rather than simply owed. Its natural opposite is punishment, which is the other way of answering what someone has done.

2. 2
   verbtransitive

   To give something of value to (a person, or for an act) in recognition or compensation.

   The company rewards employees who suggest cost-saving ideas.

   Investors hope the market will reward their patience.

   Similarcompensate, recompense, repay, honor

   Oppositepunish, penalize

3. 3
   nouncountable

   A prize or sum of money promised to whoever performs a particular deed, such as capturing a fugitive or recovering lost property.

   The museum announced a substantial reward for the return of the stolen painting.

   Reward posters for the outlaw hung in every town along the railroad.

   Similarbounty

4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To serve as fair compensation or repayment for (an effort or action).

   The stunning summit views rewarded every grueling hour of the climb.

   Few careers reward patience as generously as medicine does.

   Similarrepay, justify, compensate

   Note

   Here the subject is not someone who gives but the thing that repays: the view rewards the climb, and success rewards the sacrifice. That sets it apart from the giving sense, where a person or institution hands something over. In the passive it pairs with with, as in "his decision was rewarded with a goal," which names the payoff the choice earned.

5. 5
   nouncountable

   The consequence that an action brings to the person responsible for it, whether favorable or unfavorable.

   Exhaustion and an empty bank account were the reward for his reckless ambition.

   The reward of all that careful planning was a flawless launch.

   Similarconsequence

   Note

   The fixed phrase just reward belongs here, and it often drops its article, as in a sports report's "just reward for Villa's undoubted superiority." It marks an outcome as earned. The same word turns bitter in the indignant question "Is this the reward I get for telling the truth?", where the payback is unfair. When no judgment is intended, consequence is the plainer, neutral choice.

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