wealthy
adjective
having great wealth; rich; affluent.
wealthy
1 American
[wel-thee]
/ ˈwɛl θi /
adjective
wealthier,
comparative
wealthiest
superlative
-
having great wealth; rich; affluent.
a wealthy person; a wealthy nation.
- Synonyms:
- moneyed, well-to-do, prosperous
- Antonyms:
- poor
-
characterized by, pertaining to, or suggestive of wealth.
a wealthy appearance.
-
rich in character, quality, or amount; abundant or ample.
a novel that is wealthy in its psychological insights.
- Synonyms:
- copious
- Antonyms:
- scanty
Wealthy
2
American
[wel-thee]
/ ˈwɛl θi /
noun
wealthy
British
/ ˈwɛlθɪ /
adjective
-
possessing wealth; affluent; rich
-
of, characterized by, or relating to wealth
-
abounding
wealthy in friends
Synonym Usage
See rich.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
wealthinessnoun
-
overwealthyadjective
-
quasi-wealthyadjective
-
subwealthyadjective
-
superwealthyadjective
-
unwealthyadjective
-
wealthilyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of wealthy1
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English; wealth + -y 1
Origin of Wealthy2
Origin uncertain
Explanation
If you have riches you are wealthy. Don't be misled into thinking "riches" means only money — to many people, to have a healthy family and to be surrounded by love is to be abundantly wealthy. The Old English word wela, via the Middle English welth, meaning "happiness and prosperity in abundance," is the source of our noun wealth. Although the Middle English wele meant "well-being," the word referred primarily to money and possessions. Many people still feel that way, but Henry David Thoreau offered a different view: "Wealth is the ability to fully experience life." That is, true wealth is having whatever means the most to you.
Vocabulary lists containing wealthy
Beowulf vocabulary
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A Wealth Of Words: Synonyms for "Rich"
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"Culture Clash"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
St John’s, the wealthy college Cambridge students love to hate and last year’s victors, had come to regard headships as its birthright.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
The Fairleys’ callousness toward each other mirrors the messy family dynamics of the Murdochs, the Trumps, the Musks and other astronomically wealthy families.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Bill Essayli in a Thursday letter called for an environmental investigation into reports by families in a wealthy Orange County community that several children living there were diagnosed with a rare cancer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
He presented as a wealthy pilot, a former Army major who served with Prince Harry, and a man with more than half a million pounds cash at his disposal.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
And Lord Fredrick Ashton was a wealthy and powerful man.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
Wealthy buyers who are immune to the challenges of today’s high-interest-rate environment are driving brisk sales of luxury homes.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
Wealthy countries and developing nations are at loggerheads over how the pandemic agreement, which was adopted last year, will work in practice.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
Wealthy buyers are also competing to snap up high-end watches, pushing their prices up.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 13, 2026
Wealthy buyers—and their kids—could be behind the bump.
From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026
Wealthy Germans in luxurious clothing stood in one line, military personnel in another.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
The study by Fair by Design, external, funded by Trust for London, found affected families in Peckham pay an average of £493 more annually than wealthier households for identical items.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
Even going to play in Europe won’t make most players wealthier than an NBA player, a hurdle the U.S. simply will have to accept.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026
People who own stocks have grown wealthier, while many Americans collecting wages haven’t kept up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
They were wealthier, more glamorous, more socially polished.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026
He explains that he views Truman as distinctly different from the wealthier high schools in the county.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
South Africa is the continent's wealthiest nation and has long attracted migrants searching for better economic opportunities, some of whom enter the illegally.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
In an economy powered to an outsize degree by the spending of the wealthiest Americans, many are starting to wonder if the U.S. stock market is becoming too big to fail.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026
The wealthiest 10% of households own 89% of all stocks, according to 2021 Federal Reserve data.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
He was the wealthiest person ever to hold that office, as well as the first person of color.
From Salon ● Jun. 24, 2026
The cathedral schools are for the wealthiest and most promising boys in Christendom.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
