lucrative

adjective

lu·​cra·​tive ˈlü-krə-tiv How to pronounce lucrative (audio)
: producing wealth : profitable
lucratively adverb
lucrativeness noun

Did you know?

Paying, gainful, remunerative, and lucrative share the meaning of bringing in a return of money, but each term casts a different light on how much green you take in. Paying is the word for jobs that yield the smallest potatoes—your first paying job probably provided satisfactory compensation, but you weren't going to get rich by it. Gainful employment might offer a bit more cash, and gainful certainly suggests that an individual is motivated by a desire for gain. Remunerative implies that a job provides more than the usual rewards, but a lucrative position is the one you want—those are the kind that go beyond your initial hopes or expectations.

Examples of lucrative in a Sentence

Their success has given Gladwell an active, and extremely lucrative, second career as a public speaker. Much in demand, he is paid in the neighborhood of $40,000 per lecture. Rachel Donadio, New York Times Book Review, 5 Feb. 2006
Clubs take care of their star and other best players first, paying them lucrative salaries. By the time they get to the bottom half of the roster, they would not have enough money left to pay veterans worthwhile salaries … Murray Chass, New York Times, 16 Aug. 1994
Since the health care industry is lucrative and largely insulated from the usual disciplines of the marketplace, it has been able to absorb an ever-growing fraction of the gross domestic product. Marcia Angell, New England Journal of Medicine, 17 June 1993
The learned profession of the law was certainly not behind any other learned profession in its Bacchanalian propensities; neither was Mr. Stryver, already fast shouldering his way to a large and lucrative practice, behind his compeers in this particular, any more than in the drier parts of the legal race. Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, 1859
The business has proved to be highly lucrative. the new manager's mission was to turn the failing store into a lucrative operation
Recent Examples on the Web Over the winter, he was signed by the Dodgers to the most lucrative MLB contract ever awarded to a pitcher. Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Live-streaming can be extremely lucrative for some TikTok creators. Jasmine Li, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2024 Folk music isn’t exactly lucrative, and Giddens was a new mom, having just given birth to Aoife, her first child with Irish musician Michael Laffan. Janay Kingsberry, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2024 The company also took over a lucrative rental assistance contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Journal Sentinel, 13 Mar. 2024 Streaming has proved less lucrative for most studios not named Netflix. Jake Coyle, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Mar. 2024 Welcoming Young back on a short-term prove-it deal could benefit the 49ers, but Young may find a more lucrative spot elsewhere. Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2024 More than 25 years later, top tech companies like Meta have built offices in Miami, and Florida Memorial is helping students of color gain access to lucrative tech jobs. Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 6 Mar. 2024 Instead, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was grilled on the summit's sidelines about a lucrative and exclusive deal his city-state struck with Swift that prevents the singer from taking her Eras Tour to any other stop in Southeast Asia. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 6 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lucrative.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English lucratif, from Middle French, from Latin lucrativus, from lucratus, past participle of lucrari to gain, from lucrum

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lucrative was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near lucrative

Cite this Entry

“Lucrative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lucrative. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

lucrative

adjective
lu·​cra·​tive ˈlü-krət-iv How to pronounce lucrative (audio)
: producing wealth : profitable
lucratively adverb
lucrativeness noun

Legal Definition

lucrative

adjective
lu·​cra·​tive ˈlü-krə-tiv How to pronounce lucrative (audio)
1
: producing wealth or profit
2
: acquired, received, or had without burdensome conditions or giving of consideration
lucratively adverb
lucrativeness noun

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