expensive

[ik-spen-siv]

adjective

1. entailing great expense; very high-priced; costly.

   an expensive party.

   Antonyms: low-priced, cheap

expensive

/ ɪkˈspɛnsɪv /

adjective

1. high-priced; costly; dear

Other Word Forms

• expensively adverb
• expensiveness noun
• quasi-expensive adjective
• quasi-expensively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of expensive¹

First recorded in 1620–30; expense + -ive

Synonym Study

Expensive, costly, dear, high-priced apply to something that is high in price. Expensive is applied to whatever entails considerable expense; it suggests a price more than the average person would normally be able to pay or a price paid only for something special: an expensive automobile. Costly implies that the price is a large sum, usually because of the fineness, preciousness, etc., of the object: a costly jewel. Dear is commonly applied in England to something that is selling beyond its usual or just price. In the U.S., high-priced is the usual equivalent.

Example Sentences

My experience hints at the usefulness AI may someday have in finding a way out of our expensive, fragmented and ineffective approach to human health.

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Pilgrim’s Pride PPC 0.37%increase; green up pointing triangle logged a lower profit despite higher sales in its latest quarter as consumers continued to choose chicken over more expensive sources of protein.

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The former Tottenham captain landed in California in August after the most expensive transfer in MLS history, estimated at $26 million.

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The reason is that when stocks become more expensive and vulnerable to losses, fund managers need a cushion in cash to limit declines in their portfolios.

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They are about twice as expensive as in the Haynesville but yield about twice as much and are competitive with current natural gas prices near $3 per million British thermal units, executives say.

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Related Words

• costly 
• extravagant 
• fancy 
• high 
• lavish 
• overpriced 
• pricey 
• upscale 
• valuable 

When To Use

What does expensive mean?

Expensive means something is high priced or costs a lot of money.Expensive is most often applied to items with very high prices, such as luxury cars. But it can also be used to describe things whose price or cost is simply high compared to others.Example: I like it, but it’s just too expensive. Do you have any lower-priced models?