price
1 Americannoun
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the sum or amount of money or its equivalent for which anything is bought, sold, or offered for sale.
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a sum offered for the capture of a person alive or dead.
The authorities put a price on his head.
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the sum of money, or other consideration, for which a person's support, consent, etc., may be obtained, especially in cases involving sacrifice of integrity.
They claimed that every politician has a price.
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that which must be given, done, or undergone in order to obtain a thing.
He gained the victory, but at a heavy price.
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odds.
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Archaic. value or worth.
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Archaic. great value or worth (usually preceded byof ).
verb (used with object)
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to fix the price of.
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to ask or determine the price of.
We spent the day pricing furniture at various stores.
idioms
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at any price, at any cost, no matter how great.
Their orders were to capture the town at any price.
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beyond / without price, of incalculable value; priceless.
The crown jewels are beyond price.
noun
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Bruce, 1845–1903, U.S. architect.
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(Edward) Reynolds, 1933–2011, U.S. novelist.
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(Mary) Leontyne born 1927, U.S. soprano.
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a male given name.
noun
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the sum in money or goods for which anything is or may be bought or sold
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the cost at which anything is obtained
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the cost of bribing a person
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a sum of money offered or given as a reward for a capture or killing
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value or worth, esp high worth
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gambling another word for odds
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whatever the price or cost
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at a high price
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invaluable or priceless
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what someone deserves, esp a fitting punishment
it's just the price of him
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what are the chances of something happening now?
verb
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to fix or establish the price of
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to ascertain or discover the price of
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to charge so highly for as to prevent the sale, hire, etc, of
Related Words
Price, charge, cost, expense refer to outlay or expenditure required in buying or maintaining something. Price is used mainly of single, concrete objects offered for sale; charge, of services: What is the price of that coat? There is a small charge for mailing packages. Cost is mainly a purely objective term, often used in financial calculations: The cost of building a new annex was estimated at $10,000. Expense suggests cost plus incidental expenditure: The expense of the journey was more than the contemplated cost. Only charge is not used figuratively. Price, cost, and sometimes expense may be used to refer to the expenditure of mental energy, what one “pays” in anxiety, suffering, etc.
Other Word Forms
- preprice verb (used with object)
- priceable adjective
- pricer noun
- reprice verb
- well-priced adjective
Etymology
Origin of price
First recorded in 1175–1225; (noun) Middle English pris(e), from Old French, Latin pretium “price, value, worth” ( precious ); (verb) late Middle English prisen, from Middle French prisier, derivative of pris, Old French as above; prize 2, praise
Explanation
The price of something is how much it costs. It’s usually money, but sometimes not. For example, the price of staying up all night is that you’re really sleepy the next day. Wake up! You can use the noun price to mean the money exchanged for an item or service — or use it figuratively, to mean "something negative that's required in exchange for something positive." If you hear the phrase "a small price to pay," think of this figurative meaning. You could say, for example, that having clouds of pet hair all over your house is a small price to pay for your wonderful cat.
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.
Even with the recent price action, shares of Microsoft have fallen roughly 11% so far this year, as investors have grown apprehensive of Microsoft’s ability to compete in the age of AI.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 16, 2026
Already, the consumer price index rose 3.3% year over year in March, up from a 2.4% annual rate in February.
From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026
PayPal shares rose 0.5% on Thursday and were just below the new price target.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 16, 2026
The firm, however, raised its price target on Corning stock to $175 from $115.
From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026
We were charged with protecting history at all costs, while they were happy to change history for the right price.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
