living wage

noun

1
: a subsistence wage
2
: a wage sufficient to provide the necessities and comforts essential to an acceptable standard of living

Examples of living wage in a Sentence

He was barely earning a living wage.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Our schools need better funding, and our direct support staff deserve living wages. Emily Harvey, The Denver Post, 5 Nov. 2024 Add to this a clearer-than-ever bifurcation between first jobs that pay a living wage and appear to have career pathways and jobs that have one or the other or neither. Ryan Craig, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024 Xiong is pro-choice, supports living wages, worker’s organization rights and tax cuts for working families as well as investments in public transportation, roads and infrastructure. Staff, Detroit Free Press, 21 Sep. 2024 Due to the high cost of child care, that estimated living wage spikes to $33.36 an hour for one adult with one child in Alabama. Matt Egan, CNN, 22 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for living wage 

Word History

First Known Use

1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of living wage was in 1817

Dictionary Entries Near living wage

Cite this Entry

“Living wage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/living%20wage. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on living wage

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!