pay it forward

present singular third person pays it forward · participle present paying it forward · participle past paid it forward · past paid it forward

1. Synonym of pay forward.

   1 more example

   The study authors, citing other examples of "pay it forward" kindness at fast food restaurants and their own experiments encouraging subjects to help others, write: "Why, in the absence of external sanctions and opportunities for reciprocation, do people help strangers? One possible explanation is that helping is driven by receiving or observing help. In other words, generosity towards strangers may be socially contagious."

   2025 November 13, Kamala Thiagarajan, “If you're going to be kind to another human, today is the day to do it!”, in NPR

   Synonyms: pay forward