honorarium

[ on-uh-rair-ee-uhm ]

noun

, plural hon·o·rar·i·ums, hon·o·rar·i·a [on-, uh, -, rair, -ee-, uh].

1. a payment in recognition of acts or professional services for which custom or propriety forbids a price to be set:

   The mayor was given a modest honorarium for delivering a speech to our club.

2. a fee for services rendered by a professional person.

honorarium

/ ˌɒnəˈrɛərɪəm /

noun

1. a fee paid for a nominally free service

Word History and Origins

Origin of honorarium¹

1650–60; < Latin honōrārium fee paid on taking office, noun use of neuter of honōrārius honorary

Word History and Origins

Origin of honorarium¹

C17: from Latin: something presented on being admitted to a post of honour

Example Sentences

Dr. Waxman was not associated with the study but was paid a speaking honorarium by the company.

From New York Times

There is a cap of roughly $30,000 on outside pay for the justices, which mainly applies to teaching and other honorariums.

From New York Times

Ms. Haley listed a dozen speaking engagements, for each of which she reported an honorarium between $100,001 and $1 million.

From New York Times

He said Mattis listed the $100,000 honorarium figure on his application because he wanted the Marine Corps’ and State Department’s “most detailed and rigorous review” of his UAE speaking engagement.

From Washington Post

“I was on the China Development Bank board for 13 years, and 10 years as chairman,” Keating said, adding that his fee, or honorarium, was $5,000 a year.

From Seattle Times

More About Honorarium

What does honorarium mean?

An honorarium is a payment for special, professional services that don’t technically require compensation or for which payment isn’t customarily given.

An honorarium is usually given as an appreciative gesture for services outside of one’s normal job—it’s not a salary.

More generally, it can refer to a one-time fee paid to a professional for their services.

The correct plural of honorarium can be either honorariums or honoraria. Technically speaking, honoraria is the Latin-based plural form of honorarium. (Many other Latin-derived words can be pluralized in the same way, but many are rarely used, such as stadia as the plural for stadium.)

Example: I was paid a modest honorarium for the summer poetry workshop that I led.

Where does honorarium come from?

The first records of honorarium come from the 1600s. The word comes from the Latin honōrārium, meaning “fee paid on taking office.” In Latin, honōrārium is the noun form of the adjective honōrārius, meaning “honorary.”

Should you ever be invited to be a speaker at a conference, you might receive an honorarium. It’s kind of like a gift for your time and expertise. Such payments are sometimes referred to as ex gratia—meaning they’re given as a gift rather than as a formal, required payment. An honorarium isn’t a freelance payment or a salary (though it is usually considered taxable income). An honorarium is also different than a stipend (a periodic payment) or a per diem (a daily allowance to cover expenses), though it could be used to cover the expenses of traveling to speak at a conference, for example. (Our advice? When you do work or offer your expertise, require payment, regardless of what the payment is called.)

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to honorarium?

• honorariums (plural)
• honoraria (plural)

What are some words that share a root or word element with honorarium? 

• honorary
• honoree
• honorable

What are some words that often get used in discussing honorarium?

• compensation
• fee
• payment
• engagement
• consultation
• conference
• speaker
• lecture
• gratuity 
• gift

How is honorarium used in real life?

Honorariums are frequently given in the sectors of academia, government, religious institutions, and nonprofits.

Elsevier offered me $100 to write a 4,000 to 8,000 word chapter for their International Encyclopedia of Education. I offered to waive the honorarium if they would make my chapter open access. They declined. A month ago, I made a similar offer to @JohnCattEd. They accepted.

— Dylan Wiliam (@dylanwiliam) February 17, 2020

My university refused to hire this longtime contingent faculty member who was the only person in our department whose classes were consistently filled, so he left. They brought him back to keynote for BHM. His honorarium is almost as much as what he was paid to teach 1 class.

— Kayla Renée Wheeler (@krw18) February 5, 2020

I've made it. I just got a speaking offer with a 2k honorarium. To talk about social media and science. I don't do this for the money, but when folks budget for scicomm speakers, my heart soars.

— Dr. Paige Jarreau (@FromTheLabBench) January 6, 2020

 

 

Try using honorarium!

Which of the following words is LEAST likely to be used in reference to an honorarium?

A. gift
B. compensation
C. salary
D. fee