worthy
adjective
having adequate or great merit, character, or value.
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worthy
1 American
[wur-thee]
/ ˈwɜr ði /
adjective
-
worthier,
comparative
-
worthiest
superlative
-
having adequate or great merit, character, or value.
a worthy successor.
-
of commendable excellence or merit; deserving of one's time, attention, interest, work, trouble, etc..
a book worthy of praise;
a person worthy to lead.
- Synonyms:
- honorable, upright, exemplary, excellent, estimable, worthwhile, meritorious, deserving
noun
-
worthies
plural
-worthy
2
American
worthy
British
/ ˈwɜːðɪ /
adjective
-
(postpositive; often foll by of or an infinitive) having sufficient merit or value (for something or someone specified); deserving
-
having worth, value, or merit
noun
Usage
What does -worthy mean? The combining form -worthy is used like a suffix meaning “deserving of,” "fit for," or "capable of travel in or on." It is occasionally used in a variety of everyday and technical terms. The form -worthy comes from Old English -wyrðe, meaning “worthy.”
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of worthy
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English; see origin at worth 1, -y 1
Explanation
Use the adjective worthy to describe the good causes to which you donate a little money each year. Their admirable qualities are what make them worthy. Something that deserves respect is worthy, whether it's a charity, a hard working tennis opponent, or a struggle to overcome a disability. If it's worth your admiration or has some inherent value, it's worthy. The word has been around since the thirteenth century, and it was especially common in the 1300's to use worthy as a noun meaning "person of merit."
Vocabulary lists containing worthy
Thumbs Up: Synonyms for "Good"
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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.
See Examples For:
Panettiere's decision to publicly share her struggles is worthy of respect, said William Moyers, the vice-president of public affairs for Hazelden Betty Ford, the largest nonprofit addiction treatment provider in the US.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Plus, he envisions lending it to worthy organizations in the future to help them raise money.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
In some cases, those experiences can contribute to a fear of failure rooted in the belief that mistakes make a person less worthy in the eyes of others.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 18, 2026
Hal, John and the rest must work to be worthy of their power.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
She kept away from mediumship; she tried to prove herself worthy of a place in the Kane family.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Her childhood gave her ample evidence that finding a man was not the answer to the riddle of a woman’s life, and the last thing she envisioned for herself was a Disney -worthy fairy tale.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 17, 2018
I wish I could muster up some -worthy contrarianism, but I’m right there with those guys.
From Slate ● Mar. 6, 2013
They are not, as you will imagine, at all like the pictures in the Shakspeare Gallery: no; they are -worthy of Dryden.
From The Letters of Horace Walpole, Earl of Orford — Volume 4 by Horace Walpole
On the face of it, little connects the mutton-chopped worthies who built places like Saltaire and Bournville with the tech bros of Silicon Valley.
From BBC ● Nov. 27, 2022
The answer, my worthies, is that it is nowhere to be found in the Constitution.
From Salon ● May 14, 2022
Other worthies such as Adam and the Ants and James Ingram were shut down in this category.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2022
Their work gradually added members to the Hall, culminating in a second committee to add a batch of worthies in 2006.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 18, 2020
‘Very ridiculous of you, Frodo! But I wish I had been there to see. The worthies of Bree will be discussing it a hundred years hence.’
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
But instead Andrew remained part of the Royal Family, appearing at national events, at cross-purposes to the worthier efforts of his elder brother.
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026
In “Death of a Unicorn,” the last-act thrills just can’t match the early-going’s billionaire satire that gleefully prescribes a worthier comeuppance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2025
Extensive development work is being conducted to give old clothes and textiles a worthier end.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 6, 2024
From the early days, fitness seemed worthier if it came with a price tag.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 5, 2023
I wanted to make Joe less ignorant and common, that he might be worthier of my society and less open to Estella’s reproach.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Among his worthiest financial prescriptions is to marry well.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
However while Musk and Altman have been focused on each trying to prove themselves the worthiest custodians of AI in court, their rivals have raced ahead.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
Soulfulness versus slickness is of the worthiest subjects in our increasingly AI-dominated age, and it’s already led to some true modern classics, from “Her” to “After Yang.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2023
It is why Hall was deemed the worthiest of Olympic champions.
From New York Times ● Feb. 15, 2022
Though it was a forbidden love, still he felt it to be the worthiest thing about him, and the purest, and the deepest.
From "Tiger, Tiger" by Lynne Reid Banks
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.
