Ways to say it
| Italian | IPA |
|---|---|
| costoso | /kosˈto.zo/ /kosˈto.so/ |
| caro | /ˈka.ro/ |
| dispendioso | /dis.penˈdjo.zo/ /dis.penˈdjo.so/ |
All these terms describe something that has a high price or cost.
Which one should you use?
caro is the most common way to express that something is expensive in everyday conversation. costoso is slightly more formal and is often used to refer specifically to the actual cost or price of an object. dispendioso is used when something is resource-intensive, meaning it requires a large amount of money, time or effort.
How does it change in a sentence?
These adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify. costoso becomes costosa for feminine singular nouns. For the word caro, the masculine plural form is cari and the feminine plural form is care.
How do you pronounce it?
costoso is pronounced /kosˈto.zo/. It has 3 syllables, with the stress on the 2nd syllable.
Did you know?
- Italian speakers often use the phrase costare un occhio della testa to describe something extremely expensive, which literally translates to 'costing an eye from the head'.
- The word caro shares its Latin ancestor with the English word 'charity', as both stems from the idea of something being 'precious' or 'valuable'.
- While caro means 'expensive' in a commercial context, it is also the standard word used to describe someone who is 'dear' or 'beloved'.
Examples in context
- È un po' costoso.It's a bit expensive.This sentence shows how to use costoso to say something is a bit expensive.Tatoeba #7913380 by Guybrush88, translation #7913361 by CK
- Questo non è caro.This is not expensive.This sentence shows how to use caro to say something is not expensive.Tatoeba #4406108 by Guybrush88, translation #1216159 by jared1981
- Non era così caro.It wasn't that expensive.This sentence shows how to use caro to say something was not that expensive.Tatoeba #5625866 by Guybrush88, translation #2645046 by CK
- Quel cappotto è molto costosoThat coat is very expensive
- La manutenzione di quella macchina è molto onerosaThe maintenance of that car is very expensive
- Il ristorante italiano è un po' caroThe Italian restaurant is a bit expensive
- 354 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Francesco and Chiara are looking at furniture in a showroom.
- FrancescoQuesto divano è davvero costoso, Chiara.This sofa is really expensive, Chiara.
- ChiaraSì, Francesco, è un pezzo di alta qualità.Yes, Francesco, it is a high-quality piece.
- FrancescoTrovare un modello simile sarà difficile.Finding a similar model will be difficult.
- ChiaraCerchiamo qualcosa di meno costoso da qualche altra parte.Let's look for something less expensive somewhere else.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “expensive” translations and entries costoso, caro, dispendioso, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries caro, costoso, dispendioso, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
