Question

Worth Your Salt deserving the pay or reward that you get

Accepted Answer

In order to get a raise, you have to prove that you're worth your salt. This 19th-century expression comes from an ancient practice. For thousands of years, salt, a common thing today, was rare and highly prized. The Roman army paid part of a soldier's wages in salt. Our word "salary" comes from the Latin word salarium, which means "salt money." So if you were a good, loyal, brave, hardworking soldier, you were worth what they paid you—salt. Now all hardworking employees are "worth their salt," regardless of how they're paid.

Idiom	Worth Your Salt
Example	In order to get a raise, you have to prove that you're worth your salt.
Meaning	deserving the pay or reward that you get
Origin	This 19th-century expression comes from an ancient practice. For thousands of years, salt, a common thing today, was rare and highly prized. The Roman army paid part of a soldier's wages in salt. Our word "salary" comes from the Latin word salarium, which means "salt money." So if you were a good, loyal, brave, hardworking soldier, you were worth what they paid you—salt. Now all hardworking employees are "worth their salt," regardless of how they're paid.

Worth Salt Paid Word Hardworking Order Raise Prove