What does "price" mean?
The cost required to gain possession of something.
Price
/pɹaɪs/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The cost required to gain possession of something.
- Grammar: price is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: cost, toll, amends, amount.
- Useful contrasts: benefit, free, goodies.
- Usage evidence: My roommate is prodigal when it comes to spending money on movies; he buys them the day they're released, regardless of price.
How to use "price"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "price" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "price" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "price" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "price" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "price" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "cost" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "price", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The cost required to gain possession of something.
"We can afford no more at such a price."
- 2 Acronym of protect, rest, ice, compression, and elevation (“a common treatment method for sprained joints”). abbreviation, acronym, alt-of, uncountable
"Even though PRICE can help you get on the road to recovery, it only represents the first step."
- 3 the high value or worth of something wordnet
- 4 The cost of an action or deed.
"I paid a high price for my folly."
- 5 the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold) wordnet
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Value; estimation; excellence; worth.
"Her price is far above rubies."
- 7 value measured by what must be given or done or undergone to obtain something wordnet
- 8 a monetary reward for helping to catch a criminal wordnet
- 9 the amount of money needed to purchase something wordnet
- 10 cost of bribing someone wordnet
Verb
- 1 To determine the monetary value of (an item); to put a price on. transitive
- 2 ascertain or learn the price of wordnet
- 3 To pay the price of; to make reparation for. obsolete, transitive
"Thou damned wight, / The author of this fact, we here behold, / What iustice can but iudge against thee right, / With thine owne bloud to price his bloud, here shed in sight."
- 4 determine the price of wordnet
- 5 To set a price on; to value; to prize. obsolete, transitive
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To ask the price of. colloquial, dated, transitive
"to price eggs"
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from Welsh [in turn originating as a patronymic], anglicized from ap Rhys. countable, uncountable
- 2 A placename:; A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Queen Anne's County, Maryland. countable, uncountable
- 3 A placename:; A place in the United States:; A township in Monroe County, Pennsylvania. countable, uncountable
- 4 A placename:; A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Rusk County, Texas. countable, uncountable
- 5 A placename:; A place in the United States:; A city, the county seat of Carbon County, Utah. countable, uncountable
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 A placename:; A place in the United States:; A river in Utah, United States. countable, uncountable
- 7 A placename:; A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Monongalia County, West Virginia. countable, uncountable
- 8 A placename:; A place in the United States:; A town in Langlade County, Wisconsin. countable, uncountable
- 9 A placename:; A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Garfield, Jackson County, Wisconsin. countable, uncountable
- 10 A placename:; A village municipality in La Mitis regional county municipality, Bas-Saint-Laurent region, Quebec, Canada. countable, uncountable
- 11 A placename:; A town in Yorke Peninsula council area, South Australia. countable, uncountable
- 12 A placename:; Ellipsis of Price County. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
Example
"My roommate is prodigal when it comes to spending money on movies; he buys them the day they're released, regardless of price."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "price"?
Common synonyms include: cost, toll, amends, amount, amounts, amounts to.
How do you use "price" in a sentence?
My roommate is prodigal when it comes to spending money on movies; he buys them the day they're released, regardless of price.
How do you pronounce "price"?
Pronounced /pɹaɪs/.
Etymology
From Middle English price (“price, prize, value, excellence”), borrowed from Old French pris, preis, from Latin pretium (“worth, price, money spent, wages, reward”); compare praise, precious, appraise, appreciate, depreciate, etc.