Word
wealth
US/ˈwɛɫθ/
UK/wˈɛlθ/
Definitions
01money and assets
B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun
n. a large amount of money, property, or valuable things that a person or country owns.
n. the state of being rich; a great amount of valuable material possessions or financial assets.
日本語:富※
“The family's wealth came from their successful shipping business over many years.”
“Economists are concerned that the concentration of wealth in a small percentage of the population may lead to long-term social instability.”
Usage
Uncountable in this sense.
Antonyms
02a large amount of something
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun
n. a large amount of something useful or interesting.
n. an abundance or profusion of something, often used with 'of'.
“The library offers a wealth of information for students doing research.”
“The new encyclopedia provides a wealth of detail regarding the architectural history of the region, including rare photographs and blueprints.”
Usage
Usually takes the preposition 'of'.
03well-being
C2 · Proficiency Uncountable noun Archaic · Literary
n. a state of being healthy, happy, and successful.
n. the state of prosperity or well-being of a person or community.
“The old prayers asked for the health and wealth of the king.”
“In this historical context, the term refers not to financial gain but to the general wealth and commonweal of the citizenry.”
Usage
Rarely used in modern speech except in fixed historical or religious contexts.
Synonyms
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “wealth” in context.
Verb
01. accumulate wealth
“He spent his entire career trying to accumulate wealth through smart investments.”
verb + noun
02. distribute wealth
“The government is looking for new ways to distribute wealth more fairly across the country.”
verb + noun
03. possess a wealth of
“The local library possesses a wealth of historical documents dating back to the 18th century.”
verb + noun + of + noun
Adjective
04. untold wealth
“Legends say the sunken ship contains untold wealth in gold and silver coins.”
adj + noun
05. vast wealth
“Despite his vast wealth, the billionaire lived a very modest and quiet life.”
adj + noun
Noun
06. distribution of wealth
“Economists are concerned about the unequal distribution of wealth in modern society.”
noun + of + noun
07. wealth of experience
“Our new manager brings a wealth of experience from her time working in international finance.”
noun + of + noun
Preposition
08. in wealth
“There has been a significant increase in wealth among the middle class this decade.”
prep + noun
Real-World Examples
“Extreme wealth can concentrate power in the hands of a few.” “This pattern suggests that wealth and authority were not monopolized by a single powerful leader.” “Her civil partner, McDermid, has written 51 books, which have been translated into more than 40 languages, sold more than 20m copies and won a wealth of awards.” Etymology
Inherited from Middle English welth, welthe (“happiness, prosperity”), from Old English welþ, welþu, from Proto-West Germanic waliþu (“wealth”). Alternatively, possibly an alteration (due to similar words in -th: compare helth (“health”), derth (“dearth”)) of wele (“wealth, well-being, weal”), from Old English wela (“wealth, prosperity”), from Proto-Germanic walô (“well-being, prosperity”), from Proto-Indo-European *wel- (“good, best”); equivalent to weal + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Dutch weelde (“wealth”), Low German weelde (“wealth”), Old High German welida, welitha (“wealth”). Related also to German Wohl (“welfare, well-being, weal”), Danish vel (“weal, welfare”), Swedish väl (“well-being, weal”). More at weal, well.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
ADJECTIVE
Related words
Idioms
01. roll in wealth
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- B2 · Upper IntermediateOxford
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/wealth
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「日本語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0