Payed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have compensated or settled a debt or obligation
2. To have disbursed money as payment for goods or services
3. To have rendered a financial transaction complete by providing the required amount

Etymology: "Payed" is the past tense and past participle of "pay," so its history is the history of that verb. The spelling "payed" is an older form that English kept alongside "paid" for centuries. In the sense of settling a debt or wage, "paid" is the form most speakers use today, while "payed" survives mainly in nautical use, where it means to cover a ship's seams with pitch or tar to make them watertight, and in the sense of letting out rope. The verb "pay" itself came into English from Old French "payer," which in turn came from Latin "pacare," meaning to pacify or appease. The original idea was closer to calming a creditor than to handing over coins. A debt was something that needed to be quieted, and paying it was a way of satisfying the person owed.

Synonyms: paid