Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

pay forward

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.94 in modern English

Syllables
pay -for-ward
IPA
22
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

Having been the recipient of help or a good deed, to propagate goodwill by helping another person in turn.

Transitive verb

Etymology

Modelled on pay back (“to repay”).

Usage

Inflected Forms

pays forward (present, singular) paying forward (participle, present) paid forward (participle, past) paid forward (past)

Synonyms

pay it forward

Questions

What does pay forward mean?
Having been the recipient of help or a good deed, to propagate goodwill by helping another person in turn.
Where does pay forward come from?
Modelled on pay back (“to repay”).

How to pronounce pay forward

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “pay forward”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “pay forward”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “pay forward” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.