Associations to the word «Payoff»

Wiktionary

PAYOFF, noun. Alternative spelling of pay-off
PAYOFF FUNCTION, noun. (game theory) A mathematical function describing the award given to a single player at the outcome of a game.

Dictionary definition

PAYOFF, noun. The final payment of a debt.
PAYOFF, noun. Payment made to a person in a position of trust to corrupt his judgment.
PAYOFF, noun. The income or profit arising from such transactions as the sale of land or other property; "the average return was about 5%".
PAYOFF, noun. A recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing; "the wages of sin is death"; "virtue is its own reward".

Wise words

Words - so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them.
Nathaniel Hawthorne