profitable
Americanadjective
-
yielding profit; remunerative.
a profitable deal.
-
beneficial or useful.
- Synonyms:
- helpful, valuable, advantageous
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of profitable
Explanation
Things that are profitable make money or are beneficial in other ways. Businesses hope to be profitable in the financial sense, but a profitable relationship is one that's good for everyone involved. Profitable started out as a word to describe anything useful, but it hooked up with finance in the mid-1700s. Profits are measured in money earned beyond expenses, so profitable businesses or transactions make money. A busy restaurant, sold-out concert, and best-selling book are all profitable. People also use this word for situations that are good in ways that don’t involve money. If you learned a lot from something, then it was a profitable experience, even if you didn't make any cash.
Vocabulary lists containing profitable
Content Summary 4.1: Causes and Consequences of Iberian Maritime Exploration and Colonialism
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From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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Business, List 3
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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.
A profitable week for 22-year-old Wu pushes him to a career high of second place in the world rankings, behind Zhao Xintong.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
Both were accused of concealing the dangers of their very profitable products.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
Exactly a year since he unveiled his first collection at Chanel, Franco-Belgian designer Matthieu Blazy has proved himself to be a shrewd and hugely profitable recruit by the family-owned French fashion label.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
In Muñoz’s future, the profitable car business of today pays for the robot business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
Ma and Pa think he should socialize more, make more profitable connections.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
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.
