priceless
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
so valuable that it is impossible to say how much it is worth.
having a value beyond any price; inestimable or irreplaceable.
Simple“The museum houses several priceless paintings by famous artists.”
In context“The family was relieved to recover the priceless heirlooms, which held a sentimental value far exceeding their market price.”
PitfallThis ring is very cheap; it is priceless. This ring is very cheap; it is worthless.Priceless means something is so valuable you cannot buy it. If something has no value because it is poor quality, use 'worthless'.
Synonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
used to describe a situation or someone's reaction that is very funny or surprising.
extremely amusing, absurd, or ridiculous; often used to describe a spontaneous reaction or a comical situation.
Simple“You should have seen the look on his face when we shouted 'surprise'—it was priceless.”
In context“The expression of pure bewilderment on the manager's face when the intern corrected his math was absolutely priceless.”
UsageOften follows the verb 'to be' and is used as a predicative adjective.
Teacher's tipIn this informal sense, the word often carries a touch of irony or mockery regarding someone's misfortune or mistake.
“He has the priceless ability to rise to the big occasions, as seen in his Man of the Match performances in every final (bar the last one) he’s played in.”
“Photograph: Noah Thilemann/FC Nordsjælland Yirenkyi idolised Essien growing up and Essien’s words of wisdom were priceless.”
From price + -less (“lacking, without”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.