profitable

[prof-i-tuh-buhl]

adjective

1. yielding profit; remunerative.

   a profitable deal.

2. beneficial or useful.

   Synonyms: helpful, valuable, advantageous

profitable

/ ˈprɒfɪtəbəl /

adjective

1. affording gain, benefit, or profit

Other Word Forms

• profitableness noun
• profitably adverb
• profitability noun
• nonprofitability noun
• nonprofitable adjective
• nonprofitablely adverb
• nonprofitableness noun
• subprofitable adjective
• subprofitableness noun
• subprofitably adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of profitable¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English; profit + -able

Example Sentences

Many Sonoma growers had historically considered grapes a crop of last resort, compared with more profitable apples, prunes and olives.

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It is more profitable for them to manufacture familiar gas-powered SUVs and pickups than to pursue new supply chains and retool their lines.

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The unit, which ABB says is the world’s second-largest robotics manufacturer, has grown little in recent years but is profitable.

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The retreat from India was part of a strategy to shrink the company’s global presence and focus on profitable markets, analysts said.

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With gold at $4,000 an ounce, “there isn’t a mine in the world that isn’t robustly profitable,” he told MarketWatch.

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Related Words

• beneficial 
• commercial 
• cost-effective 
• effective 
• fruitful 
• good 
• lucrative 
• practical 
• productive 
• rewarding 
• successful 
• useful 
• valuable 
• worthwhile