Paid vs Payable: Difference and Comparison

These two English words are commonly used in financial terms. One of these words is the past tense and past participle of “pay”, while the other is the debts owed by a business or a thing that can be paid. So, the paid vs payable may sound similar, but they have different meanings.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, “paid” is marked by the receipt pay or being or having been paid or paid for. It’s a word generally used when something that is up for sale has been acquired financially.

The term “payable” refers to that which can be paid or a thing that may be paid.

Both terms are often used in cases where businesses are owed or to indicate that a product or a service has been paid for.

Definition of Paid

The word “paid” doesn’t appear in some English dictionary. It’s the past tense and past participle of the term “pay”. The term “pay” means to give money or compensation in exchange for goods or services.

So, the past tense and past participle of “pay” is generally used in sentences when referring to a payment already made by an individual or a business.

For example, “He paid her off the books and in kind where possible” (Oxford English Dictionary).

The word “paid” refers to transactions that have been successful after paying for goods or services. For every product or service that is worth a penny, they are completely owned by the payer provided he or she has fulfilled their obligation and the payee has received the amount of money which the product or service is worth.

Once it involves receiving money and confirming payment, the right word to use is “paid”. It could be any type of payment such as salaries, bills, and purchases.

An employee who receives his or her monthly salary could tell a friend that “I have been paid for the month”. Also, a worker who has not received his or her wages can complain by saying “I have not been paid at work”.

A customer who walks into a grocery store will have to have to pay for the items purchased before they can leave the store. Their receipt will indicate “paid” with the list of every goods they bought.

Additionally, as an intransitive verb, the term “pay” (which the past tense and past participle is paid”) means to suffer consequences.

For example, “She paid for her fun in the sun with a terrible sunburn” (Oxford English Dictionary).

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Definition of Payable

The term “payable” is a noun, the debt owed by a business or a thing that may be paid. As an adjective, “payable” means that which is to be paid.

The word refers to an amount of money that is able to be paid. When a certain amount of money is payable, it generally means that the payer is obligated to pay the amount agreed upon to the payee.

The term “payable” can be used to refer to a type of payment owned by an employer, an individual or a business such as salaries, purchases, and bills.

For example, a worker waiting to receive a salary from an employer can say “My monthly salary is a payable amount”.

What this means is that the employer has an obligation to the worker but the salary is yet to be paid.

Also, when a customer receives a bill for their purchases at the grocery store, the customer can say “I have a payable balance”- this indicates that the customer owes the store and has yet to make the payment.

Paid vs Payable: Difference between Paid and Payable

The word “paid” doesn’t appear in some English dictionary. It’s the past tense and past participle of the term “pay”. The term “pay” means to give money or compensation in exchange for goods or services.

The term “payable” is a noun, the debt owed by a business or a thing that may be paid. As an adjective, “payable” means that which is to be paid.

As an intransitive verb, the term “pay” (which is the past tense and the past participle is “paid”) means to suffer consequences.

For example, “She paid for her fun in the sun with a terrible sunburn” (Oxford English Dictionary).

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Paid vs Payable: Comparison Chart

	Paid	Payable
Definition	The past tense and past participle of the term “pay”. The term “pay” means to give money or compensation in exchange for goods or services.	The term “payable” is a noun, the debt owed by a business or a thing that may be paid. As an adjective, “payable” means that which is to be paid.
Usage	Generally used in sentences when referring a payment already made by an individual or a business.	The word refers to an amount of money that is able to be paid.
Example of a sentence	He paid her off the books an in kind where possible	Is value-added tax payable on the planning application fee?
	The simple past tense and the past participle of pay	Requiring payment on a certain date

Paid vs Payable: Examples of Sentences with Paid and Payable

Let’s look at some examples of sentences with the past tense and past participle of pay.

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Examples of Sentences with Paid

The following are examples of sentences with the past tense and past participle of pay.

• The football club paid $120,000 to secure the signature of the player on a six-year deal.
• The young man paid the landlord $1,000 per month for the apartment.
• According to an official statement on the university’s website, an application fee of $70 must be paid in time before the deadline.
• Clark paid off his credit card debt in full.
• Employees of the company were often paid on time.
• The manager paid the employees as he was instructed to.
• The company paid the best architects to construct their new building
• He paid a fine for violating the rules of the game.
• The company paid for his full two-year training abroad.
• He paid for their meal at the seafood restaurant.

Examples of Sentences with Payable

• The company told us that the invoice is payable within 60 days.
• The ticket cost $40 and payable at the entrance.
• According to the company’s statement, the minimum payable will continue to be $120.
• Maria was informed that her taxes were payable by October 18^th.
• The business has a large amount of accounts payable.

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Paid vs Payable: Using Paid and Payable Interchangeably

A common mistake most people often make is to use “paid” and “payable” interchangeably. Although these two words may seem similar, they have distinct meanings in general.

The past tense and past participle of “pay” is generally used in sentences when referring a payment already made by an individual or a business.

In contrast, the term “payable” is a noun, the debt owed by a business or a thing that may be paid.

Conclusion

“Paid” is the past tense and past participle of “pay” and it’s generally used in sentences when referring to a payment already made by an individual or a business. The word “paid” refers to transactions that have been successful after paying for goods or services.

The word refers to an amount of money that is able to be paid. As an adjective, “payable” means that which is to be paid.

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References

• Merriam-Webster Dictionary: payable
• Cambridge Dictionary: payable
• Vocabulary: payable