pay grade

[ pey greyd ]

noun

1. the grade of a member of the armed services established according to a scale of increasing amounts of base pay and related to but not identical with official rank:

   A soldier in my pay grade had very little money.

2. a grade on any pay or salary scale:

   Advancement to a higher pay grade will depend on your job performance.

Word History and Origins

Origin of pay grade¹

First recorded in 1880–85; originally a term in the U.S. armed forces

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. be above / be beyond one's pay grade, to be above one’s level of ability, skill, knowledge, or authority: It’s beyond this court’s pay grade to alter the doctrine.

   To be honest, that subject is way above my pay grade.

   It’s beyond this court’s pay grade to alter the doctrine.

Example Sentences

While the decision to feature a middle-aged Harold is above my pay grade, it likely has to do with Levi’s willingness — or desire — to star as a childlike man, as he has done previously in two “Shazam” films.

From Los Angeles Times

“Cool part for me is that’s above my pay grade in terms of what happens next with all that.”

From Los Angeles Times

It’s not that she didn’t meet Kim Jong-un at all, but that access to that information, one way or another, was always above the readers’ pay grade.

From Slate

And those decisions are well above our pay grade.

From Los Angeles Times

The computer had been processing above its pay grade for hours.

From Slate