superannuation

superannuation — noun

1. money that is regularly put aside during a person's working life, usually by bot

1.nounB2
Definition

money that is regularly put aside during a person's working life, usually by both the employee and the employer, so that it can provide income after the person stops working

Example

Noor's employer pays twelve percent of her salary into a superannuation fund each month.

collocation: superannuation fund

After working for thirty years, Liang started receiving monthly payments from his superannuation.

Common collocations
  • superannuation fund
  • superannuation contribution
  • superannuation balance
  • superannuation account
  • superannuation scheme
  • superannuation plan
  • superannuation system
Synonyms
  • pension

    broader term that can refer to either a government payment or an employer-funded retirement scheme

  • retirement fund

    more general term used internationally; lacks the specific AU/UK legal framework

  • super

    informal Australian abbreviation, extremely common in everyday speech

  • 401(k)

    US-specific employer retirement savings plan with a different tax structure

Usage Note

Frequently shortened to 'super' in informal Australian English. In the United States, the equivalent is usually called a '401(k)' or 'retirement plan'.

Common Mistakes

The government pays me superannuation every month.
The government pays me the Age Pension every month.
In Australia, 'superannuation' is your personal retirement savings, while the government payment for seniors is called the 'Age Pension'.

Word family

  • superannuated
    adjectiveC1
  • superannuate
    verbC2
  • super
    nounB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four terms refer to money received after retirement, but they differ in regional use, legal structure, and formality. 'Superannuation' is the formal term in Australia, the UK, and New Zealand for a workplace retirement savings scheme to which both employee and employer contribute. 'Pension' is broader: it can mean a government payment to elderly citizens (e.g. the UK State Pension) or an employer-sponsored plan that guarantees a fixed income. 'Retirement fund' is a general, internationally understood term for any pool of savings set aside for retirement. 'Super' is the informal Australian shortening of superannuation — used in everyday conversation ('How much super do you have?'). '401(k)' is the US equivalent and has different tax rules. A British worker talks about their 'pension pot', an American about their '401(k)', and an Australian about their 'super'.

pension ↗retirement fundsuper ↗401(k)

Common collocations

Nouns

Prepositions

  • into superannuation
  • from superannuation
  • towards superannuation

Etymology

LatinEnglish

From Latin 'super' (over, beyond) and 'annus' (year), forming 'superannuatus' — meaning too old or past the useful age. The word first entered English in the 1600s to describe someone who was too old for work or service. By the late 1800s, it had come to refer to the pension or allowance paid to such a person after retirement. The financial sense became common in British, Australian, and New Zealand employment law in the 20th century.