pension

B2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈpɛnʃən/ UK /ˈpɛnʃn̩/ See IPA manual

Freq #6338

Meanings

1

noun
A regular sum of money paid to a person after they retire from work.

Many old people depend on their pension to pay the bills.
2

verb
To allow or make someone retire and receive a pension.

The company pensioned off several older workers last year.
3

noun
A small, inexpensive hotel or guest house, especially in continental Europe.

We stayed in a cosy little pension near the station.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a regular sum of money paid... superannuation

2 verb · to allow or make someone... pension off

More hostel hotel

Word family

Forms pensionedpensioningpensions

Derived forms outpensionpensionablepensionarypensioneepensioneeringpensionerpensionless

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

pension plan
an arrangement for saving and providing income after retirement

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Pension derives from Latin pendere, “to weigh” or “to pay.” In early English it could mean a payment, tax, or regular sum paid to secure someone’s loyalty; its familiar sense of an annuity for a retired employee developed from the early 16th century.

Etymology

From Middle English pencioun, pensioun, from Anglo-Norman pencione, Old French pencion, and their source, Latin pēnsiō (“payment, weight, rent, compensation”), from the participle stem of pendō (“to weigh”). Doublet of pensione.

*(s)pend- Proto-Indo-European pencioun Middle English pencione xno pencion Old French pēnsiō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society Personal Finance

External links

# pension

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈpɛnʃən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈpɛnʃn̩/
**Frequency rank:** 6338

## Meanings
1. A regular sum of money paid to a person after they retire from work.
2. To allow or make someone retire and receive a pension.
3. A small, inexpensive hotel or guest house, especially in continental Europe.

## Examples
- Many old people depend on their pension to pay the bills.
- The company pensioned off several older workers last year.
- We stayed in a cosy little pension near the station.

## Synonyms
- hostel
- hotel

## Derived Forms
- outpension
- pensionable
- pensionary
- pensionee
- pensioneering
- pensioner
- pensionless

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *(s)pend-
- Root: pencioun
- Root: pencione
- Root: pencion
- Root: pēnsiō

## Etymology
From Middle English pencioun, pensioun, from Anglo-Norman pencione, Old French pencion, and their source, Latin pēnsiō (“payment, weight, rent, compensation”), from the participle stem of pendō (“to weigh”). Doublet of pensione.

## AI Etymology
Pension comes from Middle English pencioun, pensioun, from Anglo-Norman pencione, Old French pencion, and their source, Latin pēnsiō (“payment, weight, rent, compensation”), from the participle stem of pendō (“to weigh”). Doublet of pensione. In present-day English it covers a regular sum of money paid to a person after they retire from work, to allow or make someone retire and receive a pension, and a small, inexpensive hotel or guest house, especially in continental Europe. The wider family includes derived forms such as outpension, pensionable, pensionary, pensionee, pensioneering.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Personal Finance

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