cost
/kɒst/noun
उच्चारण कॉस्ट
लागत, क़ीमत; हानि
Basic word
- 1
[C, U]
the amount of money that you need in order to buy, make or do something; the effort, loss or damage that is involved in order to do or achieve something
लागत, क़ीमत; हानि
- the cost of living
- at the cost of his health
- What is the total cost of the trip to Jaipur?
+ 3 more examples
- The cost of vegetables goes up in the rainy season.
- Many people lost their homes, and the cost in lives was high.
- The company has cut costs by moving to a smaller office.
- 1
[T]
to have as a price; to cause the loss of something
क़ीमत होना; (हानि) कराना
- The book costs 200 rupees.
- Carelessness cost him the match.
- How much does a ticket to Mumbai cost?
+ 3 more examples
- The repairs cost us nearly a lakh of rupees.
- One careless mistake cost the team the whole series.
- A good education costs a lot, but it is worth it.
Synonyms sell for come to amount to lose
§Structures (grammar patterns) 4
cost + amount (verb, no passive)
In the sense of having a price, cost is followed by an amount and is not used in the passive. The past tense is also cost.
कीमत होने के अर्थ में 'cost' के बाद राशि आती है और इसका passive नहीं बनता; past tense भी 'cost' ही है।
- The ticket cost five hundred rupees.
- The repairs cost us a lot of money.
cost + person + amount / cost + person + something
The person who pays can follow cost directly. It can also mean to make someone lose something: His carelessness cost him his job.
भुगतान करने वाला व्यक्ति सीधे 'cost' के बाद आ सकता है; यह किसी को कुछ गँवाने पर मजबूर करने का अर्थ भी देता है।
- The mistake cost Radhika two marks.
- The delay cost the company its biggest client.
the cost of + noun / -ing
As a noun, cost is followed by of for the thing that is bought or done. It is countable in the plural and uncountable in the singular.
Noun के रूप में 'cost' के बाद ख़रीदी या की जाने वाली चीज़ से पहले 'of' आता है।
- The cost of living has risen in the cities.
- Think about the cost of building a new hostel.
costing (verb, to work out the price)
The verb cost is regular only in the sense 'to calculate the price': costed, costing.
'Cost' क्रिया 'कीमत निकालने' के अर्थ में ही regular है: costed, costing।
- The architect costed the project at two crore rupees.
- The scheme has not been properly costed.
+Collocations 4
adjective + cost
highlowrisingtotalhiddenfixed
- The hidden costs of the course were not mentioned in the brochure.
verb + the cost
cutbearcoverreducemeetshare
- The college will cover the cost of your books.
cost + noun
pricecontrolestimatesavingcentreof living
- The government is trying to bring down the cost of living.
at + cost
at a cost ofat any costat all costsat the cost ofat no cost
- He completed the project at the cost of his health.
“More examples 6
- The school trip cost eight hundred rupees per student.
विद्यालय की यात्रा का ख़र्च प्रति विद्यार्थी आठ सौ रुपये था।
- How much does a monthly train pass cost?
रेल का मासिक पास कितने का है?
- The cost of vegetables rises sharply during the monsoon.
मानसून के दौरान सब्ज़ियों की कीमत तेज़ी से बढ़ती है।
- Careless driving can cost lives.
लापरवाही से गाड़ी चलाना जान भी ले सकता है।
- Arjun won the match, but it cost him a badly sprained ankle.
अर्जुन ने मैच जीता, पर इसकी क़ीमत उसे गंभीर मोच के रूप में चुकानी पड़ी।
- The company plans to cut costs by reducing waste.
कंपनी बर्बादी घटाकर ख़र्च कम करने की योजना बना रही है।
!Common mistakes 2
✗ The book is cost two hundred rupees.
✓ The book costs two hundred rupees.
Cost is an ordinary verb here; do not add 'is' before it.
यहाँ 'cost' सामान्य क्रिया है; उससे पहले 'is' न लगाएँ।
✗ The phone was costed five thousand rupees.
✓ The phone cost five thousand rupees.
In the sense of price, cost is not used in the passive and its past tense is cost.
कीमत के अर्थ में 'cost' का passive नहीं बनता और उसका past tense 'cost' ही है।
≠Thesaurus: which synonym when
These words all concern money, but they differ in whose money is meant.
ये शब्द धन से जुड़े हैं, पर इनमें अंतर यह है कि धन किसका है।
What you pay or lose to make or get something.
कुछ बनाने या पाने के लिए जो चुकाना या खोना पड़े।
- The cost of the repairs was high.
The amount a seller asks for something.
विक्रेता किसी चीज़ के लिए जो राशि माँगता है।
- The price of onions has gone down.
Money spent on a particular thing; often plural for regular spending.
किसी विशेष चीज़ पर ख़र्च किया गया धन; नियमित ख़र्च के लिए प्रायः plural।
- Travel expenses are paid by the office.
¶Idioms 5
at all costs / at any cost
whatever is needed to achieve sth
हर क़ीमत पर; किसी भी हाल में
- The children must be protected at all costs.
- She was determined to win at any cost.
count the cost (of sth)
to feel the bad effects of a mistake or an accident
(किसी ग़लती या दुर्घटना का) ख़ामियाज़ा भुगतना
- Farmers are now counting the cost of the floods.
- The team is counting the cost of its poor fielding.
to your cost
because of your own unpleasant experience
(अपने ही) बुरे अनुभव से; भारी नुक़सान उठाकर
- He has learnt to his cost that the internet is not always safe.
- As I found out to my cost, cheap shoes don't last.
at cost
for only the amount of money that is needed to make or get sth, without any profit
(बिना मुनाफ़े के) लागत मूल्य पर
- The school sells books to students at cost.
- They agreed to supply the goods at cost.
cost a bomb
to be very expensive (British, informal)
बहुत महँगा होना (अनौपचारिक)
- That watch must have cost a bomb.
- A wedding in a big hotel costs a bomb.
→Phrasal verbs 1
cost sth out
to estimate how much money will be needed for sth
(किसी काम का) खर्च का अनुमान लगाना
- The engineers have costed out the new bridge.
- We need to cost out the project before we apply for a loan.
◇Word family
?Which word?
Keep apart cost, price and value.
Cost, price और value को अलग रखिए।
§Grammar and usage
Verb forms, asked very often: cost, cost, cost (the same in all forms; but 'costed' is used when it means calculate the cost: 'The project was costed at ten crore').
Verb forms बहुत पूछे जाते हैं: cost, cost, cost (सभी रूपों में समान; पर लागत गणना के अर्थ में 'costed': 'The project was costed at ten crore')।
The adjective costly means expensive or causing great loss ('a costly mistake').
Adjective costly का अर्थ महँगा या भारी हानि वाला है ('a costly mistake')।
“Collocations, idioms and sayings
At all costs (whatever happens), at the cost of (with the loss of), cost an arm and a leg (be very expensive), count the cost (consider the bad results).
Idioms: at all costs (हर हाल में), at the cost of (किसी चीज़ की हानि पर), cost an arm and a leg (बहुत महँगा होना), count the cost (बुरे परिणामों पर विचार करना)।
✓In the exam
General knowledge
Economics: the cost of living is the amount of money needed to pay for basic things like food and housing.
अर्थशास्त्र में cost of living (जीवन-यापन की लागत) भोजन और आवास जैसी मूल चीज़ों के लिए आवश्यक धन है।