valoir vs couter

Charmond S.C1Kwiziq community member

valoir vs couter

Hello,

Just to confirm, worth here cannot mean the price of an object?

Asked 4 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Charmond,

Yes,  it can mean the price of an object.

e.g.

N'y touche pas, ça vaut cher! Don't touch it, it's expensive!

Tu peux le jeter, ça ne vaut pas cher! You can throw it away, it is not expensive!

Hope this helps!

 

 

Charmond S.C1Kwiziq community member

Thank you for the clarification.

But i actually meant to ask, if it can be interchanged with couter?

Le bague coute mille euros = The ring costs 1000 euros

Le bague vaut mille euros = The ring is worth(is valued at) 1000 euros

CécileNative French expert teacher in Kwiziq

Yes , you can say both .

Same difference as in English between to be worth and to cost.

But people will probably use 'valoir' for big ticket items and 'coûter' for smaller ones like carrots for instance.

Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

Note the change in meaning, however: something that is worth very little can still cost a lot.

Anne D.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Reminiscent of Oscar Wilde: 

“Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.” 
Charmond S. asked:

valoir vs couter

Hello,

Just to confirm, worth here cannot mean the price of an object?

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