worth

[[t]wɜ͟ː(r)θ[/t]]

♦♦

1) v-link worth amount If something is worth a particular amount of money, it can be sold for that amount or is considered to have that value.

These books might be worth ₤80 or ₤90 or more to a collector...

His mother inherited a farm worth 15,000 dollars a year...

The contract was worth ₤25 million a year.

2) COMB in QUANT: QUANT of n Worth combines with amounts of money, so that when you talk about a particular amount of money's worth of something, you mean the quantity of it that you can buy for that amount of money.

I went and bought about six dollars' worth of potato chips...

Large numbers of deer now roam the forests and are causing thousands of millions of roubles-worth of damage.

PRON

Worth is also a pronoun.

`How many do you want?' - `I'll have a pound's worth.'

3) COMB in QUANT: QUANT of n Worth combines with time expressions, so you can use worth when you are saying how long an amount of something will last. For example, a week's worth of food is the amount of food that will last you for a week.

You've got three years' worth of research money to do what you want with...

After an hour and a quarter's-worth of cleansing, toning and pampering, the difference to the way my skin felt was remarkable.

PRON

Worth is also a pronoun.

There's really not very much food down there. About two weeks' worth.

4) v-link worth -ing If you say that something is worth having, you mean that it is pleasant or useful, and therefore a good thing to have.

He's decided to get a look at the house and see if it might be worth buying...

If this was what his job required, then the job wasn't really worth having...

Most things worth having never come easy.

5) v-link worth n/-ing If something is worth a particular action, or if an action is worth doing, it is considered to be important enough for that action.

No one is worth a great deal of sacrifice...

I am spending a lot of money and time on this boat, but it is worth it...

This restaurant is well worth a visit...

It is worth pausing to consider these statements from Mr Davies.

6) N-UNCOUNT: usu with poss Someone's worth is the value, usefulness, or importance that they are considered to have. [FORMAL]

He had never met a woman like her, nor had he ever had a woman of her worth as a friend...

The team would have need of a driver of his worth.

7) PHRASE: V inflects If you do something for all you are worth, you do it with a lot of energy and enthusiasm.

We both began waving to the crowd for all we were worth...

Push for all you're worth!

8) PHRASE: V inflects If someone does something for all it is worth, they do it as much as possible and for as long as they can get benefit from it.

You get anywhere with legal aid only by playing the system for all it is worth.

...taking an idea and exploiting it for all it's worth.

9) PHRASE: PHR with cl If you add for what it's worth to something that you say, you are suggesting that what you are saying or referring to may not be very valuable or helpful, especially because you do not want to appear arrogant.

Personal preference will dictate how you drink your whisky. For what it's worth, my feeling is that ice is fine...

I've brought my notes, for what it's worth.

10) PHRASE: v-link PHR If an action or activity is worth someone's while, it will be helpful, useful, or enjoyable for them if they do it, even though it requires some effort.

It might be worth your while to go to court and ask for the agreement to be changed...

You'll find it well worth your while to learn something of each island's special features before visiting them.

Syn:

worthwhile

11) worth your weight in gold → see weight