price

¹

[prahys]

noun

1. the sum or amount of money or its equivalent for which anything is bought, sold, or offered for sale.

2. a sum offered for the capture of a person alive or dead.

   The authorities put a price on his head.

3. the sum of money, or other consideration, for which a person's support, consent, etc., may be obtained, especially in cases involving sacrifice of integrity.

   They claimed that every politician has a price.

4. that which must be given, done, or undergone in order to obtain a thing.

   He gained the victory, but at a heavy price.

5. odds.

6. Archaic.,  value or worth.

7. Archaic.,  great value or worth (usually preceded byof ).

verb (used with object)

priced, pricing 

1. to fix the price of.

2. to ask or determine the price of.

   We spent the day pricing furniture at various stores.

Price

²

[prahys]

noun

1. Bruce, 1845–1903, U.S. architect.

2. (Edward) Reynolds, 1933–2011, U.S. novelist.

3. (Mary) Leontyne born 1927, U.S. soprano.

4. a male given name.

price

/ praɪs /

noun

1. the sum in money or goods for which anything is or may be bought or sold

2. the cost at which anything is obtained

3. the cost of bribing a person

4. a sum of money offered or given as a reward for a capture or killing

5. value or worth, esp high worth

6. gambling another word for odds

7. whatever the price or cost

8. at a high price

9. invaluable or priceless

10. what someone deserves, esp a fitting punishment

    it's just the price of him

11. what are the chances of something happening now?

verb

1. to fix or establish the price of

2. to ascertain or discover the price of

3. to charge so highly for as to prevent the sale, hire, etc, of

Other Word Forms

• pricer noun
• priceable adjective
• preprice verb (used with object)
• reprice verb
• well-priced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of price¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; (noun) Middle English pris(e), from Old French, Latin pretium “price, value, worth” ( precious ); (verb) late Middle English prisen, from Middle French prisier, derivative of pris, Old French as above; prize ², praise

Word History and Origins

Origin of price¹

C13 pris, from Old French, from Latin pretium price, value, wage

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. at any price, at any cost, no matter how great.

   Their orders were to capture the town at any price.

2. beyond / without price, of incalculable value; priceless.

   The crown jewels are beyond price.

More idioms and phrases containing price

• at all costs (at any price)
• cheap at twice the price
• every man has his price

Synonym Study

Price, charge, cost, expense refer to outlay or expenditure required in buying or maintaining something. Price is used mainly of single, concrete objects offered for sale; charge, of services: What is the price of that coat? There is a small charge for mailing packages. Cost is mainly a purely objective term, often used in financial calculations: The cost of building a new annex was estimated at $10,000. Expense suggests cost plus incidental expenditure: The expense of the journey was more than the contemplated cost. Only charge is not used figuratively. Price, cost, and sometimes expense may be used to refer to the expenditure of mental energy, what one “pays” in anxiety, suffering, etc.

Example Sentences

If she’s elected to Congress, Gonzales-Torres said her first priority would be to go after corporations that are “raising prices for everyday people” and their lobbyists who distort the political process in Washington.

From Salon

Stephen Gallagher, from SSE Airtricity said: "We know energy costs remain a primary concern for customers across Northern Ireland, so this price reduction will hopefully provide some welcome relief for many gas customers."

From BBC

The court documents say several electric meters were ripped from homes and replaced with new meters that charged much higher prices, according to the lawsuit.

From Los Angeles Times

The company said earlier this year that it would make "modest" price increases due to the rising costs.

From BBC

But he is worried that Indian exporters may lose ground to African competitors who offer similar quality products at lower prices.

From BBC

Related Words

• amount 
• bill 
• cost 
• demand 
• discount 
• estimate 
• expenditure 
• expense 
• fare 
• fee 
• figure 
• output 
• pay 
• payment 
• premium 
• rate 
• return 
• tariff 
• valuation 
• worth