worth

1 of 4

noun

ˈwərth 

1

a

: monetary value

farmhouse and lands of little worth

b

: the equivalent of a specified amount or figure

a dollar's worth of gas

2

: the value of something measured by its qualities or by the esteem in which it is held

a literary heritage of great worth

3

a

: moral or personal value

trying to teach human worth

b

: merit, excellence

a field in which we have proved our worth

4

: wealth, riches

worth

2 of 4

preposition

1

a

: equal in value to

b

: having assets or income equal to

2

: deserving of

well worth the effort

worth

3 of 4

adjective

1

archaic : having monetary or material value

2

archaic : estimable

worth

4 of 4

verb

worthed; worthing; worths

intransitive verb

archaic

: become

—usually used in the phrase woe worth

Phrases

worth one's salt

: of substantial or significant value or merit

for all one is worth

: to the fullest extent of one's value or ability see also for what it's worth

Synonyms

Noun

• account
• merit
• valuation
• value

Examples of worth in a Sentence

Noun

A diamond's worth is determined partly by its cut and clarity.

The worth of the stocks has increased.

The furniture was of little worth since it was in such bad condition.

He has proved his worth to the team.

The book has proved its worth by saving me hundreds of dollars.

Preposition

an actor worth several million dollars

The corporation is worth billions of dollars.

A carefully written cover letter and resume is worth the effort.

It takes a long time to get a table at the restaurant, but the food is well worth the wait.

The movie was good, but I didn't think it was worth all the fuss.

Chicago is worth a visit. I think you'll really like it.

Do you think the car is worth buying?

It is worth noting that his father and mother are also doctors.

This book is not worth reading.

an idea well worth consideration

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Since February, Bezos has sold about $8.5 billion worth of Amazon stock after not selling any shares in 2022 or 2023. —William Gavin, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024

Forbes estimated her net worth at $1.1 billion, the bulk of which came from record-breaking ticket and merchandise sales from the Eras Tour and the film that followed. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2024

The 75-year-old French kingpin Arnault, who oversees fashion empire LVMH with a net worth of $233 billion, led the record-breaking pack of 2,781 billionaires—more than ever before. —Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024

The outlet store was the organization’s highest producing and most popular store, selling about $3,000 worth of goods per day, Curtis said. —Nick Rosenberger, Idaho Statesman, 2 Apr. 2024

The second kit is for staying at home and should have two weeks' worth of supplies. —Chad Murphy, The Enquirer, 2 Apr. 2024

Trump is the company’s majority shareholder, and his net worth tumbled by more than $1 billion as a result. —Alexandra Banner, CNN, 2 Apr. 2024

Trian controls roughly $3.5 billion worth of Disney stock (about 32 million shares), 79% of which is owned by Perlmutter. —Todd Spangler, Variety, 1 Apr. 2024

Agents searched him and found more than five thousand dollars’ worth of Brazilian cash hidden in his underwear and his clothes. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024

Preposition

Aim to keep on hand at least three to six months’ worth of all nonnegotiable living expenses. Carry sufficient insurance. —Dallas News, 30 Oct. 2022

Are common multivitamins worth the money?New study explores the benefits, harms. —Dr. Michael Daignault, USA TODAY, 3 Nov. 2022

Both of those prop bets came through for bettors and there are several others for postseason team performance and individual awards worth keeping an eye on. —Jason Hoffman, The Enquirer, 13 Jan. 2022

Finally, at a meeting in Zambia, where giraffes and zebras wandered the grounds of the hotel, the board members approved eight projects worth a total of $168 million. —Washington Post, 10 Aug. 2021

In that case, there are plenty of Memorial Day furniture sales worth a browse. —Ariel Scotti, Forbes, 28 May 2021

Pompeo also reported receiving two carpets worth a total of $19,400 from the president of Kazakhstan and the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates. —Matthew Lee, USA TODAY, 21 Apr. 2021

Adjective

That moment is never guaranteed, but the anticipation is worth it. —Solcyré Burga, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024

But the size of that gap, and the reasons for it, are also worth thinking about. —Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2024

For now, the alliance is trying to limit the potential damage by convincing Trump and his supporters that NATO is worth preserving. —John Hudson, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024

That parcel had two iPhone chargers from online retailer Temu inside, worth about $10, Munoz told Fox News Digital. —Pilar Arias, Fox News, 4 Apr. 2024

But, for all of its handy, luxurious features, the price may just be worth it. —Cai Cramer, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024

Norway’s Katharina Andresen, 28, and her younger sister Alexandra, 27, have slightly differing fortunes, with the former worth $1.7 billion and the latter $1.6 billion. —Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2024

But Miss Manners agrees with you that the benefit is not worth the personal abuse. —Judith Martin, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024

Attractions like the Carmel Mission Basilica Museum and Point Lobos State Natural Reserve are also worth a visit. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 4 Apr. 2024

Verb

The responses from 1,300 players across the league present an unusually revealing look inside how franchises worth billions of dollars are still rankled by problems—with vast gaps in quality from team to team. —Andrew Beaton, WSJ, 2 Mar. 2023

Is the Simplehuman trash can worth it? —Carolyn Forté, Good Housekeeping, 26 May 2022

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, going back to Old English weorþ, wyrth (strong neuter noun), going back to Germanic *werþa- (whence also Old Frisian werth, worth "value," Old Saxon werth "payment, price," Old High German werd "value, price," Old Icelandic verð, Gothic wairþ "price"), noun derivative from *werþa-, adjective, "of value" — more at worth entry 3

Preposition

Middle English, from worth worth entry 3

Adjective

Middle English, "having monetary value, valuable, having status, deserving, highborn, efficacious, strong," going back to Old English weorþ, wyrþ, worþ "having monetary value, valuable," going back to Germanic *werþa- (whence also Old Frisian werth "of value," Old Saxon werth "of value, worthy, dear," Old High German werd, wert "of value, valuable," Old Icelandic verðr "of value, worthy," Gothic wairþs "deserving"), of uncertain origin

Note: The Middle English adjective continues in part Old English wierðe, wyrðe "worthy, deserving," a ja-stem adjective from the same base. Welsh gwerth "worth, value, price" (whence gwerthu "to sell"), along with Middle Breton guerz, is perhaps an early loan from Old English.

Verb

Middle English worthen "to exist, be, come into existence, become, change, happen," going back to Old English weorþan, wurþan (class III strong verb) "to become, come to be, happen," going back to Germanic *werþan- (whence also Old Frisian wertha "to become, happen, arise," Old Saxon werthan, Old High German werdan, Old Icelandic verða, Gothic wairþan "to become"), going back to an Indo-European verbal base *u̯ert- "turn," whence also Latin vertō, vertere "to cause to revolve, turn, spin," vertor "(I) change direction, turn," Lithuanian verčiù, ver͂sti "to cause to turn," Sanskrit vártate "(it) turns, rolls, revolves"; with zero-grade ablaut Old Church Slavic vrǔštǫ, vrǔteti sę "to turn oneself"; with a causative stem *u̯ort- Old Church Slavic vraštǫ, vratiti "to make turn," Sanskrit vartáyati "(s/he) makes turn"; from an n-present Old Church Slavic obvrǔnǫti sę "to turn around," Tocharian B wärnāmane "turning"

Note: In Germanic the Indo-European base *u̯ert- "turn" developed the figurative sense "become, happen" (compare, in English, "the milk turned sour"), which has largely displaced the literal senses (but compare the suffix *-wearda- -ward entry 1).

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Preposition

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing worth

• comparable worth
• an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
• a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
• for all one is worth
• for what it's worth
• make it worth your while
• get his money's worth
• for all someone is worth
• not worth a damn
• self-worth
• not worth the candle
• not worth a darn
• not worth the paper it's written/printed on
• worth a go
• personal worth
• someone's money's worth
• take something for what it's worth
• sense of self-worth
• two cents' worth
• worth every penny
• worth one's weight in gold
• worth one's salt
• worth someone's while
• worth a tinker's damn
• a picture is worth a thousand words

Kids Definition

worth

1 of 2 preposition

ˈwərth 

1

a

: equal in value to

the vase is worth $200

b

: having possessions or income equal to

an actress worth millions

2

: deserving of

well worth the effort

3

: capable of

ran for all I was worth

worth

2 of 2 noun

1

a

: value in terms of money

furniture of little worth

b

: the equivalent of a certain amount or figure

five dollars worth of gas

2

: the value of something measured by its qualities

an experience of great worth

3

: excellence sense 1