From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishearnearn /ɜːn $ ɜːrn/ ●●● S2 W2 verb 1 money for work [intransitive, transitive]BEPROFIT to receive a particular amount of money for the work that you do He earns nearly £20,000 a year. You don’t earn much money being a nurse. He did all sorts of jobs to earn a living. I was the only person in the house who was earning. She was earning good money at the bank. Chris will pay – he’s earning a fortune.► see thesaurus at get2 profit [transitive]BFEARN to make a profit from business or from putting money in a bank etc The movie earned £7 million on its first day. You could earn a higher rate of interest elsewhere.3 something deserved [transitive]DESERVE a) to do something or have qualities that make you deserve something I think you’ve earned a rest. He soon earned the respect of the players. He hopes to earn a place in the team. The company has earned a reputation for reliability. b) if your actions or qualities earn you something, they make you deserve to have itearn somebody something That performance earned her an Oscar as Best Actress.4 → earn your/its keepCOLLOCATIONSnounsearn moneyI’d like to earn more money than I do now.earn a wage/salaryYou are more likely to earn a decent wage if you have a degree.earn a living (also earn your living) (=earn the money you need to live)She started to earn a living by selling her jewellery on a market stall.earn £30,000 a year/$200 a week/£5 an hour etcNewly qualified teachers earn a minimum of £24,000 a year.earn good money (=earn a lot of money)You can earn good money working in London.earn a fortune (=earn an extremely large amount of money)Footballers at the top clubs earn a fortune these days. THESAURUSearn to be paid a particular amount of money for your work. Earn is more formal than get or makeA newly-qualified teacher can expect to earn about £20,000 a year.get to earn a particular amount of money every hour, week etcHow much do you get an hour?She gets more than I do.make to earn money, especially a lot of money, or money that is not from regular employmentYou can make a lot of money in banking.Jo makes a bit of extra money by selling his paintings.be on something British English to earn a particular amount of money each year. This is the most common way of talking about someone’s salary in British EnglishHow much are you on?Some chief executives are on huge salaries.be/get paid to receive money for work that you do for an employer, not by working for yourselfWorkers are paid around $500 a month.I get paid monthly.well-paid/badly-paid paid a lot of money/not much money for the work that you dowell-paid lawyers working in the cityIt was boring badly-paid work.take home to earn a particular amount of money after tax etc has been taken away from your payAfter tax and other deductions, I only take home £200 a week. → See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
earn• The Washington Post Company earned $187 million in 1987.• The company earned $187 million in 1998.• Alan earns $30,000 a year.• I've paid as I've earned.• It was twice what he earned.• Poors 500 Index and reinvested the dividends, he would have earned a healthy 37. 5 percent return.• Growers characterize the upcoming battle as a fight for their right to earn a living.• Gail earned her place on the team by practicing hard.• Singh had earned his prize with the shot that tied up this championship.• The 1986 Tax Reform Act ended the differential taxation of earned income and capital gains.• Enjoy your vacation - you've earned it!• At the peak of his career, Rogers was earning more than seven million dollars a year.• It's not uncommon nowadays for women to earn more than their husbands.• Our finances look better if we include the profit earned on the sale of our London offices.• Belinda was three, and he had to earn some money.• Instead they work to earn Trefoils.earning good money• We spent beyond our means when I was playing Test cricket before and earning good money.• If there are more in a household earning good money, they will pay more.• He was working for Uncle Max, and earning good money too.• Employees who are already earning good money will see little point in spending their vouchers.earn ... interest• If not, he is better off to take the money now and either spend it or invest it and earn interest.• Remember, money in pockets earns no interest.• These dollars can then be placed on deposit and earn interest.• The last deposit earns no interest at all.• Provided the margin payments earn interest at the risk-free rate, the resulting no-arbitrage condition is unaltered.• You can earn tax-free interest of as much as 7 per cent on balances as small as £10.• Present value: If you delay paying a bill, you can earn interest on the money in the meantime.• Checks written against money market funds continue to earn interest until the check clears the fund.earned ... reputation• He earned a reputation as a a first-rate draftsman.• Mudge had an earned reputation as a fine craftsman and a fair tradesman.• Through lectures, articles, and letters, she earned a reputation as an expert on workhouses.• Davis has earned a reputation as an outspoken opponent of any kind of nuclear waste dumping at sea.• Chavez earned himself a reputation for being unfair.• A team captain, Gumina had earned a reputation for stiff defense, clutch play.• She eschews small fields and has earned a reputation for unearthing longshots in competitive races.From Longman Business Dictionaryearnearn /ɜːnɜːrn/ verb1[intransitive, transitive] to be paid money for the work you doThe managing director’s personal assistant earned £35,000 last year.She earns a very respectable wage.Some young people want to start earning as soon as possible. – Pay is the money that you earn by working “What’s the pay?” “About $30 an hour.” A salary is the money that someone is paid every month by their employer, especially someone who is in a profession, such as a teacher, office worker, or manager The university provides a salary of $3000 a month plus benefits. A wage is the money that someone is paid every week by their employer, especially someone who works in a factory, shop etc She earns an hourly wage of $11.Income is all the money that you receive regularly for work His annual income is just over $40,000.Earnings is the total amount of money you earn from the job that you do The average worker’s earnings have not kept up with inflation. A fee is money that you pay to a professional person, such as a doctor or a lawyer, for work that they do Last year the company paid $12 million in legal fees to a single law firm.Remuneration is a formal word for payment for work, especially in the form of a salary and additional benefits such as a car We are offering an attractive remuneration package, including a company car and other benefits.2[transitive] if an investment earns money, it makes a profitIf a bond is not redeemed at maturity, it continues to earn interest.3earn a/your living to earn the money that you need to liveIt’s impossible to earn a decent living in this country. → see also save as you earn→ See Verb tableOrigin earn Old English earnian 