Definition of "payoff" []

• Full payment of a salary or wages. (noun)
• The time of such payment. (noun)
• Informal A final settlement or reckoning. (noun)
• Informal The climax of a narrative or sequence of events. (noun)
• Final retribution or revenge. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "It was necessary to continue the program and now it appears, the payoff is at hand."
• "Sure there's a little risk involved, but the payoff is being able to produce a unique bottle of wine -- not to mention becoming pioneers for those varietals on the Niagara Wine Trail."
• "Take risks to see more and know more — the payoff is your own freedom."