Salary Basic Week Wage Pay Paid Pay/Wage Money

A salary is the amount of money that someone earns for a year's work, usually paid once a month directly into their bank account: 'I'll pay you back at the end of the month when I get my salary.' 'She's on a salary of £23,000 a year.'

If someone is paid once a week, they receive wages . In the past, wages were always paid in cash: 'He opened the envelope and counted his wages.' When you are thinking about rates or levels of payment (rather than actual coins and bank notes), use wage: 'She earns a pretty good wage.' 'They're demanding a 20 per cent wage increase.' 'They've raised the minimum wage from $4.25 an hour to $5.50.'

Pay is a general word for the (amount of) money people get for the work they do: 'He's lost a month's pay.' 'They've been given a pay rise of £20 a week.'

Note that in informal styles these words are often used with the same meaning.