English Meaning & Definitions
Costing a lot of money; expensive.
- “Buying a new luxury car can be a costly investment.”
- “The restoration of the historic theater proved to be extremely costly.”
Causing a lot of damage, loss, or negative consequences.
- “A single mistake in the final report proved to be a costly error.”
- “The team's missed opportunity in the first half was a costly setback.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
English Antonyms & Opposites
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “costly”.
Middle English *costlich*, from Old English *costlīc*, from *cost* (expense, choice) + *-līc* (-ly, having the quality of). Cognate with Old High German *kōstlih*, meaning precious or excellent.
Think of the word 'cost' and add 'ly'—if something takes a lot of cost, it is costly.
Frequently Asked Questions About “costly”
1. What is the meaning of “costly” in English?
In English, costly (adjective) is defined as: “Costing a lot of money; expensive.”.
2. How do you use “costly” in a sentence?
“Buying a new luxury car can be a costly investment.”
3. What are English synonyms of “costly”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “costly”?
Middle English *costlich*, from Old English *costlīc*, from *cost* (expense, choice) + *-līc* (-ly, having the quality of). Cognate with Old High German *kōstlih*, meaning precious or excellent.
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A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.