worthless
English meaning: Worthless
Definition
Having no value, use, or importance at all.
Example
“The old coins turned out to be worthless copies, not the rare originals.”
Another example: “After the company collapsed, the shares became worthless.”
Usage — When, Where & How
A negative adjective with two senses: having no monetary value ('worthless shares') and being useless or pointless ('a worthless promise'). Used in all registers, often with emphasis ('utterly worthless').
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
From 'worth' (Old English 'weorth') plus '-less'.
Related Words
- useless
- worth
- valueless
Common Collocations
- utterly worthless
- worthless piece
- practically worthless
- worthless promise
Word Forms
worthless; more worthless; most worthless; worthlessness (n)
Word Tools
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
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Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
- Speakers
- 1.5B