Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Worth \Worth\, v. i. [OE. worthen, wur[thorn]en, to become, AS.
   weor[eth]an; akin to OS. wer[eth]an, D. worden, G. werden,
   OHG. werdan, Icel. ver[eth]a, Sw. varda, Goth. wa['i]rpan, L.
   vertere to turn, Skr. v[.r]t, v. i., to turn, to roll, to
   become. [root]143. Cf. {Verse}, -{ward}, {Weird}.]
   To be; to become; to betide; -- now used only in the phrases,
   woe worth the day, woe worth the man, etc., in which the verb
   is in the imperative, and the nouns day, man, etc., are in
   the dative. Woe be to the day, woe be to the man, etc., are
   equivalent phrases.

         I counsel . . . to let the cat worthe.   --Piers
                                                  Plowman.

         He worth upon [got upon] his steed gray. --Chaucer.

Worth \Worth\, n. [OE. worth, wur[thorn], AS. weor[eth],
   wur[eth]; weor[eth], wur[eth], adj. See {Worth}, a.]
   1. That quality of a thing which renders it valuable or
      useful; sum of valuable qualities which render anything
      useful and sought; value; hence, often, value as expressed
      in a standard, as money; equivalent in exchange; price.

            What 's worth in anything But so much money as 't
            will bring?                           --Hudibras.

   2. Value in respect of moral or personal qualities;
      excellence; virtue; eminence; desert; merit; usefulness;
      as, a man or magistrate of great worth.

            To be of worth, and worthy estimation. --Shak.

            As none but she, who in that court did dwell, Could
            know such worth, or worth describe so well.
                                                  --Waller.

            To think how modest worth neglected lies.
                                                  --Shenstone.

   Syn: Desert; merit; excellence; price; rate.

Worth \Worth\, a. [OE. worth, wur[thorn], AS. weor[eth], wurE;
   akin to OFries. werth, OS. wer[eth], D. waard, OHG. werd, G.
   wert, werth, Icel. ver[eth]r, Sw. v["a]rd, Dan. v[ae]rd,
   Goth. wa['i]rps, and perhaps to E. wary. Cf. {Stalwart},
   {Ware} an article of merchandise, {Worship}.]
   1. Valuable; of worthy; estimable; also, worth while. [Obs.]

            It was not worth to make it wise.     --Chaucer.

   2. Equal in value to; furnishing an equivalent for; proper to
      be exchanged for.

            A ring he hath of mine worth forty ducats. --Shak.

            All our doings without charity are nothing worth.
                                                  --Bk. of Com.
                                                  Prayer.

            If your arguments produce no conviction, they are
            worth nothing to me.                  --Beattie.

   3. Deserving of; -- in a good or bad sense, but chiefly in a
      good sense.

            To reign is worth ambition, though in hell.
                                                  --Milton.

            This is life indeed, life worth preserving.
                                                  --Addison.

   4. Having possessions equal to; having wealth or estate to
      the value of.

            At Geneva are merchants reckoned worth twenty
            hundred crowns.                       --Addison.

   {Worth while}, or {Worth the while}. See under {While}, n.

Source : WordNet®

worth
     adj 1: having sufficient worth; "an idea worth considering"; "a
            cause deserving or meriting support"; "the deserving
            poor" (often used ironically) [syn: {deserving(p)}, {meriting(p)},
             {worth(p)}]
     2: having a specified value;  "not worth his salt"; "worth her
        weight in gold" [syn: {worth(p)}]

worth
     n 1: an indefinite quantity of something having a specified
          value; "10 dollars worth of gasoline"
     2: the quality that renders something desirable or valuable or
        useful [ant: {worthlessness}]
     3: French couturier (born in England) regarded as the founder
        of Parisian haute couture; noted for introducing the
        bustle (1825-1895) [syn: {Charles Frederick Worth}]