invaluable
adjective
Did you know?
invaluable = valuable?
Many people find it confusing that the in- prefix at the beginning of invaluable apparently lacks the meaning "not" found in a number of other words, such as invalid, inarticulate, and insane. In fact, the prefix does indicate negation, but in a way that is not immediately obvious. The original (and current) meaning of invaluable is "valuable beyond estimation"; the word describes something so precious that one cannot assign a price to it. This, clearly, is the opposite of the meaning "having no value; valueless" that the word might seem to carry. Invaluable actually has been recorded in the sense "without value," but such use has been exceedingly rare and is practically nonexistent today.
Examples of invaluable in a Sentence
Oliver Sacks, New York Review of Books, 25 Sept. 2008
… the scrolls provide an invaluable snapshot of at least one important strain in early Judaism—though they are by no means a complete record of Jewish belief at that time.
—Jeremy Lott, Lingua Franca, February 2001
I stayed there only a month or so but it was an invaluable experience … : that month's residence provided the inspiration for a novel I wrote much later, Sophie's Choice.
—William Styron, This Quiet Dust and Other Writings, (1953) 1982
Their help has been invaluable to us.
the list of likely donors proved to be invaluable to our fund-raising efforts
Ashley Strickland, CNN, 3 Apr. 2024
But in addition to providing invaluable training for first responders and a centralized headquarters for emergency response, the $90 million complex on Senter Road is also going to be home to a large collection of public art.
—Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2024
As a panelist at the Amazon Black Business Accelerator and Boss Women Media Founders’ Breakfast in Dallas, Butler provided invaluable insights on the ‘sell out’ conversation, before a room packed with Black women entrepreneurs.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 29 Mar. 2024
In 1989, the duo published Total Baseball, an invaluable book for the pre-internet age that provided exhaustive lists of players’ stats dating back to the 19th century.
—Frederic J. Frommer, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Mar. 2024
From the science behind eclipses to practical tips on how to observe them safely, David and Michael will provide invaluable insights to make this event truly unforgettable.
—Discover Staff, Discover Magazine, 28 Mar. 2024
With age comes invaluable experience and perspective.
—Gary Trust, Billboard, 22 Mar. 2024
The company is no longer actively hosting these webinars, but all of the videos are still posted online and can be invaluable for new backcountry skiers looking to get into the sport.
—Josh Laskin, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Mar. 2024
The competitive yet nurturing environment, along with invaluable internships at Tracy Reese and Rodarte laid the foundation for her future.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 18 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'invaluable.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Invaluable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/invaluable. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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