pay one's dues

Earn something through hard work, long experience, or suffering. For example, She'd paid her dues in small-town shows before she finally got a Broadway part. This expression transfers the cost of being a paid-up member in an organization to that of gaining experience in an endeavor. [Mid-1900s]

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Pocahontas	-	History, Native American, Algonquin
Kelly	KEL-ee	Irish, English
RenÉE	rə-NE (French)	French, Dutch
Devadas	-	Indian, Hindi
Janice	JAN-is	English
Farrokh	-	Persian