English Reference
Adjective

worthwhile

adj.
C1 Advanced Oxford US /ˈwɝθˈwaɪɫ/ UK /wˈɜːθwaɪl/ worth·while

adj.useful, important, or good enough to be a good use of your time, money, or effort.

adj.sufficiently valuable, important, or rewarding to justify the time or effort spent. Often follows a linking verb or precedes a noun.


SIMPLE

The long hike was difficult, but the view made it worthwhile.

CONTEXTUAL

Volunteering at the local shelter is a worthwhile way to spend your weekends and help the community.

COMPLEX

While the initial investment is substantial, the long-term environmental benefits make the transition to solar energy a worthwhile endeavour for most homeowners.

Usage

Commonly follows 'it is' or 'it's' as a dummy subject (e.g., 'It is worthwhile to check').

Pitfall
a worth while projecta worthwhile project

Learners often mistakenly split the word into two parts; it is a single compound adjective.

Our scientific evidence demonstrates previous management efforts have made an impact at scale—and that current and future efforts are worthwhile.

Phys.org· 27 Aug 2026

One reason is that banks and investors often lack reliable data and effective tools to assess which climate projects are genuinely worthwhile and secure.

Phys.org· 26 Aug 2026

From worth (adjective) + while (noun).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Frequent
Updated