Example Sentences of the Verb Pay

This page provides example sentences of the verb "pay" in all tenses including active and passive forms, as well as conditional and modal forms.

Base Form pay / Past Simple paid / Past Participle paid / Gerund paying

Present Simple

Jack usually pays by credit card.

Present Simple Passive

The bill is paid at the end of every month.

Present Continuous

Tom is paying the bill now.

Present Continuous Passive

The bill is being paid now.

Present Perfect

Have you paid the telephone bill yet?

Present Perfect Passive

Has the telephone bill been paid yet?

Present Perfect Continuous

Jill has been paying their bills for years.

Past Simple

Tom paid for the vacation last month.

Past Simple Passive

The vacation was paid for by Tom last month.

Past Continuous

She was paying the waiter when the man walked into the restaurant.

Past Continuous Passive

The bill was being paid when the man walked into the restaurant.

Past Perfect

Peter had already paid the bill when I offered to get it.

Past Perfect Passive

The bill had already been paid when I offered to get it.

Past Perfect Continuous

She had been paying off all the accounts when her debt was forgiven.

Future (will)

Alice will pay him soon.

Future (will) Passive

He will be paid soon by Alice.

Future (going to)

Alice is going to pay him at the end of the week.

Future (going to) Passive

He is going to be paid at the end of the week.

Future Continuous

This time next week we will be paying off all the employees.

Future Perfect

He will have been paid over $100,000 by the end of the year.

Future Possibility

She might pay for dinner.

Real Conditional

If she pays for dinner, we won't eat very much.

Unreal Conditional

If she paid for dinner, we wouldn't eat very much.

Past Unreal Conditional

If she had paid for dinner, we wouldn't have eaten so much.

Present Modal

She must pay all her bills this week.

Past Modal

She can't have paid all her bills last month!

Quiz: Conjugate With Pay

Use the verb "to pay" to conjugate the following sentences. Quiz answers are below. In some cases, more than one answer may be correct.

1. The bill _____ at the end of every month.
2. Tom _____ for the vacation last month.
3. The bill _____ when the man walked into the restaurant.
4. Alice _____ him soon. I promise.
5. He _____ over $100,000 by the end of the year.
6. _____ the telephone bill _____ yet?
7. Peter _____ already _____ the bill when I offered to get it.
8. If she _____ for dinner, we wouldn't eat very much.
9. _____ you p_____ the telephone bill yet?
10. He _____ at the end of the week as scheduled. 

Quiz Answers

• is paid
• paid
• was being paid
• will pay
• will have been paid
• Has been paid
• had already paid 
• paid
• Have
• paid
• is going to be paid