Language Activator – Expensive

Expensive/cost a lot/costly/high/dear

expensive

(adjective)

something that is expensive costs a lot of money, more than other things of the same type

.She spends most of her money on expensive clothes

.Taxis are so expensive – that’s why I usually take the bus

expensive to make/run/buy etc

.Movies are incredibly expensive to make these days

(cost a lot (of money

(verb phrase)

especially spoken if something, especially something you do, costs a lot it is expensive

.I managed to find the bike I wanted but it cost a lot

.It costs a lot of money to go to medical school, you know

cost a lot (of money) to do something

?Did it cost a lot to fly to Rio

high

(adjective)

if the price or cost of something is high, it costs a lot

.The cost of living is higher in Denmark than in Germany

.Increased production costs will mean higher prices

costly

 (adjective)

a plan, activity etc that is costly is too expensive and wastes money – used especially about plans carried out by governments or companies

.Caring for the park’s swans is a costly business – roughly $26,600 per year

costly mistake

.Buying all those computers was a costly mistake for consumers

it’s going to cost you/it’ll cost you

if you say it’s going to cost you or it’ll cost you when someone wants to buy something, you mean it will be expensive for them

.You can get new parts specially made for these, but it’ll cost you

not come cheap

(verb phrase not in progressive)

informal to be expensive – use this especially when you think that even though something is expensive, it is still worth buying

.It would be great if we could hire her, but with all her experience, she won’t come cheap

pricey

(adjective not usually before noun)

informal very expensive or too expensive – use this especially when you are deciding whether or not to buy something

.Let’s not eat here – it’s too pricey

dear

(adjective not before noun)

British expensive – use this especially about things you buy in shops

.Those strawberries look a bit dear

.No, you can’t have an ice-cream – they’re too dear

:Practice

:Fill in the blanks with appropriate words

.N1. The blue jacket is slightly ——–, but it’s much better material

.N2. The tickets were kind of ————-, but the show was good

————-  ————- N3. Gibson guitars sound great, but they don’t

————- N4. Rents in central London are very

?N5. Do you have any less ——– cameras

N6. There are some places that can mend the suit in a couple of hours, but it’s going to ——– you

  ——– N7. The finance committee rejected their plan because they said it was too

:Answers

Dearer/ pricey/ come cheap/ high/ expensive/ cost/ costly