lucrative

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UK/ˈluː.kɹə.tɪv/Canada, US/ˈlu.kɹə.tɪv/Canada, US[ˈlu.kɹə.ɾɪv]Australia/ˈlʉː.kɹə.tɪv/

adjective

Producing a surplus; profitable.

Opposite
Less commonScrabble 14Word of the Day · Sep 1, 2025

Meanings

adjectivelucrative (comparative more lucrative, superlative most lucrative)

comparative more lucrative · superlative most lucrative

  1. Producing a surplus; profitable.

    In a given recent year, Celine has earned $40-$50 million from her various endeavors, though the majority of that income was thanks to a lucrative Las Vegas residency deal.

    2024 March 6, “Celine Dion Net Worth $800 Million”, in celebritynetworth.com
    1 more example

    Since the mid-1980s, when Indonesia first began to clear its bountiful forests on an industrial scale in favour of lucrative palm-oil plantations, “haze” has become an almost annual occurrence in South-East Asia. The cheapest way to clear logged woodland is to burn it, producing an acrid cloud of foul white smoke that, carried by the wind, can cover hundreds, or even thousands, of square miles.

    2013 June 29, “Unspontaneous combustion”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, page 29
  2. governmentOf a target: worth attacking; whose destruction is militarily useful.

    Command and Control centers and headquarters are strategically important and lucrative targets.

    2001, Eric R. Taylor, Lethal Mists, page 196
    1 more example

    Its troops can be widely dispersed as light infantry, using light anti-ship, anti-air and anti-land missiles and weapons to defenda given area or facility without presenting lucrative targets for air, missile, and artillery fire.

    1999, Anthony H. Cordesman, Iran's Military Forces in Transition, page 208

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite

adjectiveproducing a sizeable profit

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*leh₂w-“profit, gain”
  2. Latinlucrativus“profitable”
  3. Frenchlucratif
  4. Englishlucrative

Borrowed from French lucratif, from Latin lucrativus (“profitable”), from lucratus, past participle of lucror (“to gain”), from lucrum (“gain”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leh₂w- (“profit, gain”). Compare Spanish lucrar. By surface analysis, lucre + -ative.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian изгоден, доходен
  • изгоден (izgoden)producing a surplus
  • доходен (dohoden)producing a surplus
Catalan lucratiu
  • lucratiuproducing a surplus
Czech výnosný, lukrativní
  • výnosnýproducing a surplus
  • lukrativníproducing a surplus
Danish lukrativ
  • lukrativproducing a surplus
Dutch lucratief, winstgevend
  • lucratiefproducing a surplus
  • winstgevendproducing a surplus
Finnish tuottava, tuottoisa
  • tuottavaproducing a surplus
  • tuottoisaproducing a surplus
French lucratif
  • lucratifproducing a surplus
German lukrativ, rentabel
  • lukrativproducing a surplus
  • rentabelproducing a surplus
Greek επικερδής, κερδοφόρος
  • επικερδής (epikerdís)producing a surplus
  • κερδοφόρος (kerdofóros)producing a surplus
  • προσοδοφόρος (prosodofóros)producing a surplus
Hebrew רווחי
  • רווחי (rivḥi)producing a surplus
Hindi लाभदायक, लाभकारी
  • लाभदायक (lābhdāyak)producing a surplus
  • लाभकारी (lābhkārī)producing a surplus
  • लाभकारक (lābhkārak)producing a surplus
  • लाभप्रद (lābhaprad)producing a surplus
Icelandic arðbær, ábatasamur
  • arðbærproducing a surplus
  • ábatasamurproducing a surplus
  • arðsamurproducing a surplus
  • gróða-producing a surplus
Irish brabúsach, éadálach
  • brabúsachproducing a surplus
  • éadálachproducing a surplus
  • gnóthachúilproducing a surplus
Italian redditizio, remunerativo
  • redditizioproducing a surplus
  • remunerativoproducing a surplus
  • profittevoleproducing a surplus
Japanese 儲かる
  • 儲かる (mōkaru)producing a surplus
Polish zyskowny, lukratywny
  • zyskownyproducing a surplus
  • lukratywnyproducing a surplus
  • dochodowyproducing a surplus
  • intratnyproducing a surplus
Portuguese lucrativo
  • lucrativoproducing a surplus
Romanian lucrativ
  • lucrativproducing a surplus
Russian при́быльный, окупа́емый
  • при́быльный (príbylʹnyj)producing a surplus
  • окупа́емый (okupájemyj)producing a surplus
  • принося́щий при́быль (prinosjáščij)producing a surplus
Slovak výnosný
  • výnosnýproducing a surplus
Spanish lucrativo, lucroso
  • lucrativoproducing a surplus
  • lucrosoproducing a surplus
Swedish lukrativ
  • lukrativproducing a surplus
Turkish kazançlı
  • kazançlıproducing a surplus

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

lucrative. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lucrative

MLA

“lucrative.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lucrative. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “lucrative,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lucrative.

Source: lucrative on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.