dollar-a-year

[ dol-er-uh-yeer ]

adjective

1. of or being an official or employee, especially a federal appointee, who receives a token annual salary, usually of one dollar: a dollar-a-year man

Word History and Origins

Origin of dollar-a-year¹

An Americanism dating back to 1915–20

Example Sentences

Bob Moore, the grandfatherly entrepreneur who, with his wife, Charlee, leveraged an image of organic heartiness and wholesome Americana to turn the artisanal grain company Bob’s Red Mill into a $100 million dollar-a-year business, died on Saturday at his home in Milwaukie, Ore. He was 94.

From New York Times

Gary Bandy, who died at 80 from cardiovascular problems in October 2021, transformed his family’s Burbank-based business “from a million- dollar-a-year company into a $14-million-a-year company,” said Brett Bandy, one of Gary’s 11 children.

From Los Angeles Times

And Cuomo gave his 25-year-old daughter Cara a dollar-a-year job on the virus task force, echoing the time his father gave him a dollar-a-year job as an adviser when he was about her age.

From New York Times

A seven-year campaign led by French troops, the deployment of hundreds of US special forces, massive aid for local militaries and a billion dollar-a-year United Nations peacekeeping operation have been unable to decisively weaken the multiple overlapping insurgencies in the region and security has continued to deteriorate.

From The Guardian

Annual dollar-a-year increases continue until all employers reach $15 an hour in 2023.

From Washington Times