price

/praɪs/
/praɪs/
IPA guide

Other forms: prices; pricing; priced

The price of something is how much it costs. It’s usually money, but sometimes not. For example, the price of staying up all night is that you’re really sleepy the next day. Wake up!

You can use the noun price to mean the money exchanged for an item or service — or use it figuratively, to mean "something negative that's required in exchange for something positive." If you hear the phrase "a small price to pay," think of this figurative meaning. You could say, for example, that having clouds of pet hair all over your house is a small price to pay for your wonderful cat.

Definitions of price
  1. noun
    the amount of money needed to purchase something
    “the price of gasoline”
    synonyms: damage, terms
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    types:
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    asking price, selling price
    the price at which something is offered for sale
    bid price
    (stock market) the price at which a broker is willing to buy a certain security
    closing price
    (stock market) the price of the last transaction completed during a day's trading session
    factory price
    price charged for goods picked up at the factory
    highway robbery
    an exorbitant price
    purchase price
    the price at which something is actually purchased
    cash price, spot price
    the current delivery price of a commodity traded in the spot market
    support level
    (stock market) the price at which a certain security becomes attractive to investors
    valuation
    assessed price
    offer price
    (stock market) the price at which a broker is willing to sell a certain security
    upset price
    (auction) the minimum price at which a seller of property will entertain bids
    list price
    the selling price of something as stated in a catalogue or price list; often subject to discounts
    type of:
    cost
    the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
  2. noun
    value measured by what must be given or done or undergone to obtain something
    “the price of success is hard work”
    “what price glory?”
    synonyms: cost, toll
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    types:
    death toll
    the number of deaths resulting from some particular cause such as an accident or a battle or a natural disaster
    type of:
    value
    the quality (positive or negative) that renders something desirable or valuable
  3. noun
    the high value or worth of something
    “her price is far above rubies”
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    type of:
    worth
    the quality that renders something desirable or valuable or useful
  4. noun
    the property of having material worth (often indicated by the amount of money something would bring if sold)
    “he puts a high price on his services”
    synonyms: cost, monetary value
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    average cost
    total cost for all units bought (or produced) divided by the number of units
    differential cost, incremental cost, marginal cost
    the increase or decrease in costs as a result of one more or one less unit of output
    expensiveness
    the quality of being high-priced
    assessment
    the market value set on assets
    affordability, inexpensiveness
    the quality of being reasonably priced
    tax assessment
    the value set on taxable property
    costliness, dearness, preciousness
    the quality possessed by something with a great price or value
    lavishness, luxury, sumptuosity, sumptuousness
    the quality possessed by something that is excessively expensive
    moderateness, modestness, reasonableness
    the property of being moderate in price or expenditures
    bargain rate, cheapness, cut price, cut rate
    a price below the standard price
    type of:
    value
    the quality (positive or negative) that renders something desirable or valuable
  5. noun
    a monetary reward for helping to catch a criminal
    “the cattle thief has a price on his head”
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    type of:
    reward
    the offer of money for helping to find a criminal or for returning lost property
  6. noun
    cost of bribing someone
    “they say that every politician has a price”
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    type of:
    cost
    the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor
  7. verb
    determine the price of
    “The grocer priced his wares high”
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    mark up
    increase the price of
    manipulate, rig
    manipulate in a fraudulent manner
    overprice
    price excessively high
    underquote
    offer for sale at a price lower than the market price
    type of:
    determine, set
    fix conclusively or authoritatively
  8. verb
    ascertain or learn the price of
    “Have you priced personal computers lately?”
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    type of:
    ascertain
    learn or discover with certainty
Pronunciation
US
/praɪs/
UK
/praɪs/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘price'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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