valuable

1 of 2

adjective

valu·​able ˈval-yə-bəl 

-yə-wə-bəl,

-yü-ə- 

1

a

: having monetary value

b

: worth a good price

2

a

: having desirable or esteemed characteristics or qualities

valuable friendships

b

: of great use or service

valuable advice

valuableness noun

valuably

ˈval-yə-blē 

-yə-wə-blē

-yü-ə-

adverb

valuable

2 of 2

noun

: a usually personal possession (such as jewelry) of relatively great monetary value

—usually used in plural

Did you know?

invaluable = valuable?

Many people find it confusing that the in- prefix at the beginning of invaluable apparently lacks the meaning "not" found in a number of other words, such as invalid, inarticulate, and insane. In fact, the prefix does indicate negation, but in a way that is not immediately obvious. The original (and current) meaning of invaluable is "valuable beyond estimation"; the word describes something so precious that one cannot assign a price to it. This, clearly, is the opposite of the meaning "having no value; valueless" that the word might seem to carry. Invaluable actually has been recorded in the sense "without value," but such use has been exceedingly rare and is practically nonexistent today.

Synonyms

Adjective

• big-ticket
• costly
• dear
• expensive
• extravagant
• high
• high-end
• high-ticket
• precious
• premium
• priceless
• pricey
• pricy
• spendy [chiefly Northwest]
• ultraexpensive

Examples of valuable in a Sentence

Adjective

The watch is extremely valuable.

A lot of valuable advice can be found in this book.

I learned a valuable lesson.

He made many valuable contributions to the field of science.

The volunteers provide a valuable service to the community.

She is a valuable member of the staff.

Clean air is a valuable natural resource that needs to be protected.

Please don't waste my time. My time is very valuable.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Criminal marketplaces on the dark web, only accessible by way of a special web browser and often by invite only depending on the forum concerned, are selling full access to small businesses for $600, and access to insanely valuable healthcare data for $1,000 a pop. —Davey Winder, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025

There are dozens of territories around the world that fit a similar profile to Greenland’s: sparsely populated, likely to become more habitable in the coming decades or home to valuable resources, and possessing weak, ambiguous, or transitional sovereignty. —Michael Albertus, Foreign Affairs, 4 Mar. 2025

Noun

Skyler Raskin, 19 All of Stone Raskin’s valuables had been kept in a safe under the 14-year-old’s bedroom window, guarded by his top-secret passcode: 1111. —Corina Knoll, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025

Romance scams typically involve a fraudster cultivating a lengthy online relationship to build trust and then coaxing the victim into sending money, gift cards or other valuables. —Sam Sabin, Axios, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

value entry 2 + -able

Noun

noun derivative of valuable entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1576, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

circa 1775, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing valuable

• most valuable player
• valuable consideration

Rhymes for valuable

• evaluable
• invaluable

Kids Definition

valuable

1 of 2 adjective

val·​u·​able

ˈval-yə(-wə)-bəl

1

: worth a large amount of money

a valuable necklace

2

: of great use or service

valuable advice

valuableness noun

valuably

-blē

adverb

valuable

2 of 2 noun

: a possession (as a jewel) of great value

—usually used in plural