pay-off

Noun

pay-off (plural pay-offs)

1. A payment in full; the state of having been paid in full.
   • At the current monthly payment level, it'll take 32 more months to reach pay-off.
2. A reward.
   • What's the pay-off for putting up with her nonsense for ages on end?
3. A return on investment.
   • How soon could we realistically expect any pay-off from loading up on shares of that company?
4. (informal) A bribe.
   • The prison break never could have succeeded if it hadn't been for multiple pay-offs to various corrupt officers.
   • Darlinghurst cops will get you/Clean and bright/Rich and white/See where pay-offs will get you1981 September, “Sex and Vice”, in Songs of the Gay Liberation Quire

   Synonyms:

   backhander, bribe, bung, payoff, coffee money, cold drink money, dash, douceur, inducement, kopi money

5. (colloquial, especially) A resolution or justification of an event that has already occurred.
   • Where's the pay-off for that whole segment of the plot?
   • If there is a significant or surprising event in the story, it must be foreshadowed earlier on. When the event that was foreshadowed occurs, that's the payoff.2013, Heide Goody, Iain Grant, How to Write a Collaborative Novel, Pigeon Park Press, →ISBN