Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word
for what it's worth. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
for what it's worth, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
for what it's worth in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
for what it's worth you have here. The definition of the word
for what it's worth will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
for what it's worth, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
The phrase may have originally been used to qualify a statement of advice, opinion, or suggestion by referring to such a statement and describing it separately from making it.
Prepositional phrase
for what it's worth
- Considering what limited worth this advice, opinion, or suggestion might have for you; used to soften the presentation of unsolicited advice or information that may not be relevant.
1877, Julian Hawthorne, Garth, page 343:Take my advice for what it’s worth—don’t marry Garth: marry some old fool.
1908, Armand Both, The Half-smart Set, Frederick A. Stokes Company, page 276:“Well,” said he, “I have a suggestion to make, for what it’s worth.”
1999, Bruce Northam, Brad Olsen, In Search of Adventure: A Wild Travel Anthology, →ISBN, page 21:There were seven of us from America, and, for what it’s worth, I thought it was a fairly impressive group.
2005, Jennifer Rosen, Waiter, There’s A Horse In My Wine, →ISBN, page 253:For what it’s worth, the same holds true for fish bowls: overfill and you’ll suffocate the guppies.
Usage notes
"For what it's worth" can be used to emphasize humility by prompting the reader/listener to provide their judgment of worth against the statement being made; i.e., it may be useful information, it may not be, or perhaps differs from that the recipient's opinion.
Synonyms
Related terms
Translations
considering what limited worth this advice may have
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 聽不聽由自己決定／听不听由自己决定 (tīng bù tīng yóu zìjǐ juédìng) (no equivalent exists: lit., "it's up to you whether you take this advice")
- Finnish: mitä arvoa tällä onkaan
- French: pour ce que cela vaut, pour ce que ça vaut
- German: übrigens (de), nur nebenbei bemerkt, falls es Sie interessiert (the former are common, but do not express the humble tone of the English phrase); ich möchte mich nicht aufdrängen, aber..., Sie haben mich nicht nach meinem Rat gefragt, aber..., es mag keine weitere Bewandtnis haben, aber... (these are less common, but do express humility)
- Hungarian: egyébként (hu), ha netán ez segít (valamelyest), nem tudom, segít-e bármit is, (már) ha ez jelent/számít valamit
- Italian: valga quel che valga, varrà quel che varrà, valga quel che può valere
- Lithuanian: jei ką
- Polish: żeby nie było
- Portuguese: valha o que valha, valha o que valer
- Russian: за что купил, за то и продаю (ru) (za što kupil, za to i prodaju), как бы там ни было n (kak by tam ni bylo)
- Spanish: por si sirve de algo
|
See also