Meanings
verbpay one's debt to society (third-person singular simple present pays one's debt to society, present participle paying one's debt to society, simple past and past participle paid one's debt to society)
present singular third person pays one's debt to society · participle present paying one's debt to society · participle past paid one's debt to society · past paid one's debt to society
- idiomaticTo serve time in prison or a similar correctional facility.
Cite this entry
APA
pay one's debt to society. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pay%20one's%20debt%20to%20society
MLA
“pay one's debt to society.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pay%20one's%20debt%20to%20society. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pay one's debt to society,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pay%20one's%20debt%20to%20society.
Source: pay one's debt to society on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.