Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Having considerable monetary or material value for use or exchange.
  • adjective Of great importance, use, or service.
  • adjective Having admirable or esteemed qualities or characteristics.
  • noun A personal possession, such as a piece of jewelry, having a relatively high monetary value.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Capable of being valued; capable of having the value measured or estimated.
  • Of great value or price; having financial worth; representing a large market value: as, a valuable horse; valuable land; a valuable house.
  • Of great moral worth, utility, or importance; precious; worthy; estimable; deserving esteem: as, a valuable friend; a valuable companion.
  • noun A thing, especially a small thing, of value; a choice article of personal property; any piece of precious merchandise, usually of small bulk: generally in the plural.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A precious possession; a thing of value, especially a small thing, as an article of jewelry; -- used mostly in the plural.
  • adjective Having value or worth; possessing qualities which are useful and esteemed; precious; costly
  • adjective Worthy; estimable; deserving esteem
  • adjective (Law) an equivalent or compensation having value given for a thing purchased, as money, marriage, services, etc.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective having a great value.
  • noun a personal possession such as jewellery, of relatively great monetary value; — usually used in plural form.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective having great material or monetary value especially for use or exchange
  • noun something of value
  • adjective having worth or merit or value

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

value +‎ -able

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word valuable.

Examples

  • And I am not strictly opposed to a player on a non-contender winning the award, which has happened on occasion think Alex Rodriguez of the last-place Rangers in 2003 although I admit that's a tougher one for me since the word valuable suggests that the players' achievements did not go for naught and actually helped a team play into October.

    SI.com 2011

  • And I am not strictly opposed to a player on a non-contender winning the award, which has happened on occasion think Alex Rodriguez of the last-place Rangers in 2003 although I admit that's a tougher one for me since the word valuable suggests that the players' achievements did not go for naught and actually helped a team play into October.

    SI.com 2011

  • The criteria for the major leagues' MVP awards, voted on by members of the Baseball Writers Association of America, are fluid, depending largely on a voter's definition of the word "valuable."

    The MVP Dream Isn't Dead Just Yet Mike Sielski 2011

  • The U.S. military says he was seized two weeks ago and has been providing what they describe as valuable information about the group's inter-workings.

    CNN Transcript Jul 18, 2007 2007

  • They say it takes away from what they described as valuable work they could be doing in their home districts.

    CNN Transcript Feb 7, 2007 2007

  • "I must confess," says Lien Chi Altangi, "a curiosity to know what you call a valuable stock, which can only bear a winter perusal."

    Social relations in our Southern States, 1860

  • "The word 'valuable' is the whole thing," Johnson said.

    News - chicagotribune.com 2011

  • Judge Judy then proceeded to explain what she called a valuable life lesson.

    Nashville Is Talking 2008

  • And how valuable is a degree in Post-Colonial Studies compared to one in Sports Management or General Studies?

    The Volokh Conspiracy » Against the NCAA Cartel 2010

  • Scratch the surface of most successful entrepreneurs, and you'll find at least one significant "failure" that they've used to gain valuable experience.

    Think like an entrepreneur 2009

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.