costly
- costing much; expensive; high in price: a costly emerald bracelet; costly medical care.
- 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.
Origin of costly
Synonyms for costly
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comRelated Words for costly
valuable, pricey, catastrophic, ruinous, disastrous, dear, excessive, executive, exorbitant, extortionate, extravagant, fancy, high, high-priced, inordinate, precious, premium, steep, stiff, topExamples from the Web for costly
Contemporary Examples of costly
Pulling oil from the tar sands is costly, even more so when you tack transportation costs on top.
The studio took him at his word and jumped at the chance to close down, or at least reduce, his costly operation.
Is she too hawkish for the activists who helped make her vote for the Iraq War so costly back in the 2008 campaign?
Governor Bobby Jindal insists it would be too costly for the state, whose share would total nearly $2 billion over 10 years.
No matter how constitutionally suspect, how costly, how slapdash, or how disappointing a grand policy might be, well, they tried.
Historical Examples of costly
She was plain; she was simple; but it was the costly simplicity of extravagance.
Her Father's DaughterGene Stratton-Porter
I have studied the sex in a very celebrated and costly school.
In the ValleyHarold Frederic
A fine and costly residence, particularly that of a great official.
The Devil's DictionaryAmbrose Bierce
Hn-lfing, name of a costly sword, which Finn presents to Hengest, 1144.
BeowulfUnknown
But we have costly presents for those who are friendly towards us.'
FreelandTheodor Hertzka
costly
- of great price or value; expensive
- entailing great loss or sacrificea costly victory
- splendid; lavish