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

This isn’t just an expensive proposition — it’s also a psychological danger, constituting behavior that is likely to get men to withdraw from the real world and attachments to real people.

Read more on Salon

The association said it was "relieved" following Friday's deal, although the strength of the Swiss franc against the dollar was still a worry as it makes Swiss products more expensive for American consumers.

Read more on Barron's

After all, deploying fighter jets each time would be expensive.

Read more on BBC

Most Americans have been hearing tales of Pentagon woe—late, expensive new aircraft carriers; an 8,000% price markup on a soap dispenser inside a C-17 bathroom.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Transporting raw fruits that degrade within days of picking is expensive.

Read more on BBC

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?