costly
Americanadjective
-
costlier,
comparative
-
costliest
superlative
-
costing much; expensive; high in price.
a costly emerald bracelet; costly medical care.
- Synonyms:
- high-priced, dear
-
resulting in great expense.
The upkeep of such a large house is costly.
-
resulting in great detriment.
It was a costly mistake because no one ever trusted him again.
-
of great value; very valuable; sumptuous.
-
lavish; extravagant.
adjective
-
of great price or value; expensive
-
entailing great loss or sacrifice
a costly victory
-
splendid; lavish
Synonym Usage
See expensive.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of costly
First recorded in 1350–1400, costly is from the Middle English word costli. See cost, -ly
Explanation
Something that's costly is expensive. The worst kind of news you can hear from your car mechanic is that you need costly repairs. Things that cost a lot of money are costly, but you can also use the word for events that cost you other things — like time, happiness, or advantage. A soldier's costly mistake might result in someone's death, and a costly law might end up hurting the people it's meant to help.In the 13th century, costful was used instead, and both words stem from cost, which has a Latin root, constare, "to stand at," or "to cost."
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:
But the goalkeeper made a costly error for the Gunners to give away the opening goal in a 3-3 draw with Southampton at Emirates Stadium which contributed to the demise of Arsenal's 2022-23 title bid.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
The meat, cured at Burbank’s RC Provisions with a proprietary recipe developed by Al Langer, still gets a lengthy — and costly — steaming after it arrives at the restaurant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
The ensuing protests were violent and costly and worried many of us, not because we agreed with Mr. Yiannopoulos, but because outrage over ideas had turned students against each another.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
Slowing down, as you point out, comes with risks and, yes, sometimes, costly errors or judgment.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
So will those who favor the modern trend to built-in obsolescence, for chemical control is self-perpetuating, needing frequent and costly repetition.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
As costlier fuel works its way into other products and services, “core” inflation, which excludes food and energy, comes under upward pressure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
Higher interest rates make it costlier to borrow money, which acts as a brake on spending and economic growth.
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
The diversions mark the latest redrawing of global oil flows after months of war have forced producers, traders and shipowners to abandon familiar routes for ever costlier detours.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Built from high-resolution microscope images rather than costlier molecular techniques, it creates a detailed three-dimensional map of the brainstem, identifying more than 200 clusters of brain cells and nerve pathways.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
But they bowed to Sproul’s judgment that losing Lawrence would be even costlier, and voted to cover all the annual operating and maintenance costs that Lawrence had budgeted for the Rad Lab.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
It was among the costliest civil disturbances in American history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Local enthusiasm for the tournament had fallen away after co-hosts the United States were knocked out by Belgium on July 6, but tickets for the final still became the costliest in US sporting history.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
Burns: It is one of the costliest mistakes investors make.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
Later in the year, Jaguar Land Rover was attacked, in what became the costliest cyber event in UK history.
From BBC ● Apr. 1, 2026
When Cortes and his Indian allies finally attacked, the Mexica resisted so fiercely despite their weakness that the siege has often been described as the costliest battle in history—casualty estimates range up to 100,000.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
