Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
worthy - 7 dictionary results

wor⋅thy

[wur-thee] adjective, -thi⋅er, -thi⋅est, noun, plural -thies.
–adjective
1. having adequate or great merit, character, or value: a worthy successor.
2. of commendable excellence or merit; deserving: a book worthy of praise; a person worthy to lead.
–noun
3. a person of eminent worth, merit, or position: The town worthies included two doctors.

Origin:
1175–1225; ME; see worth 1 , -y 1


wor⋅thi⋅ly, adverb
wor⋅thi⋅ness, noun


2. meritorious, worthwhile, estimable, excellent, exemplary, righteous, upright, honorable.

-worthy

a combining form of worthy, occurring in adjectives that have the general sense “deserving of, fit for” (blameworthy; newsworthy; noteworthy; trustworthy), “capable of travel in or on” (airworthy; roadworthy; seaworthy), as specified by the first word of the compound.
wor·thy   (wûr'thē)   
adj.   wor·thi·er, wor·thi·est
  1. Having worth, merit, or value; useful or valuable.
  2. Honorable; admirable: a worthy fellow.
  3. Having sufficient worth; deserving: worthy to be revered; worthy of acclaim.
n.   pl. wor·thies
An eminent or distinguished person.
wor'thi·ly adv., wor'thi·ness n.

Worthy

Wor"thy\, a. [Compar. Worthier; superl. Worthiest.] [OE. worthi, wur[thorn]i, from worth, wur[thorn], n.; cf. Icel. ver[eth]ugr, D. waardig, G. w["u]rdig, OHG. wird[=i]g. See Worth, n.]

1. Having worth or excellence; possessing merit; valuable; deserving; estimable; excellent; virtuous.

Full worthy was he in his lordes war. --Chaucer.

These banished men that I have kept withal Are men endued with worthy qualities. --Shak.

Happier thou mayst be, worthier canst not be. --Milton.

This worthy mind should worthy things embrace. --Sir J. Davies.

2. Having suitable, adapted, or equivalent qualities or value; -- usually with of before the thing compared or the object; more rarely, with a following infinitive instead of of, or with that; as, worthy of, equal in excellence, value, or dignity to; entitled to; meriting; -- usually in a good sense, but sometimes in a bad one.

No, Warwick, thou art worthy of the sway. --Shak.

The merciless Macdonwald, Worthy to be a rebel. --Shak.

Whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. --Matt. iii. 11.

And thou art worthy that thou shouldst not know More happiness. --Milton.

The lodging is well worthy of the guest. --Dryden.

3. Of high station; of high social position. [Obs.]

Worthy women of the town. --Chaucer.

Worthiest of blood (Eng. Law of Descent), most worthy of those of the same blood to succeed or inherit; -- applied to males, and expressive of the preference given them over females. --Burrill.

Worthy

Wor"thy\, n.; pl. Worthies. A man of eminent worth or value; one distinguished for useful and estimable qualities; a person of conspicuous desert; -- much used in the plural; as, the worthies of the church; political worthies; military worthies.

The blood of ancient worthies in his veins. --Cowper.

Worthy

Wor"thy\, v. t. To render worthy; to exalt into a hero. [Obs.] --Shak.
Language Translation for : worthy
Spanish: noble,
German: würdig,
Japanese: 立派な

worthy  (adj.)
c.1250, "having merit," from worth (1). Attested from c.1300 as a noun meaning "person of merit" (esp. in Nine Worthies, famous men of history and legend: Joshua, David, Judas Maccabæus, Hector, Alexander, Julius Cæsar, Arthur, Charlemagne, Godfrey of Bouillon -- three Jews, three gentiles, three Christians).
Search another word or see worthy on Thesaurus | Reference