worthless
Americanadjective
adjective
-
without practical value or usefulness
-
without merit; good-for-nothing
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of worthless
Explanation
If you have your antique pearl necklace appraised by a jeweler and learn that it's a worthless fake, you'll be terribly disappointed, since something that's worthless has no monetary value. Use the adjective worthless to describe something that has no use or isn't worth any money. Your old broken-down car, a stamp collection with no value, and your no-good roommate who never cleans and won't pay his share of the rent could all be described as worthless. The roots are the Old English words weorð, "equal in value to," and leas, "devoid of."
Vocabulary lists containing worthless
Power Suffix: -less
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Good Riddance
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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.
Her aunt has converted $600 into worthless Iraqi dinars and Zimbabwean dollars that she thinks she’ll be able to use to get access to the technology when it becomes available.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
The strait won’t be worthless, but it’s a depreciating asset.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
First the government let its smallest unit of money become worthless.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
By the next summer, problems in his work had left him feeling anxious, depressed and worthless.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
So why did she feel worthless at the same time?
From "Genuine Fraud" by E. Lockhart
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.
