Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

worth one's salt

/ˈwɝθ wʌnz ˈsɔlt/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.14 in modern English

Syllables: worth one's salt
IPA: /ˈwɝθ wʌnz ˈsɔlt/

19

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

1

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Adept or competent, especially at one's occupation.

Example Sentences

"Any doctor worth their salt should be able to correctly diagnose the illness."
"[T]he encouragement for Shipwrights continues great at the Capital; to which all young People are naturally deſirous to come, whenever they fancy their abilities would diſtinguiſh them, or find a deſire to improve themſelves in their profeſſion; which two claſſes comprehend all the Shipwrights that will ever be worth their salt!"
"Everyone who is worth his salt has his enemies, who must be beaten, be they evil thoughts and habits in himself, or spiritual wickedness in high places, or Russians, or Border-ruffians, or Bill, Tom, or Harry, who will not let him live his life in quiet till he has thrashed them."
"It did all our hearts good to see him spit in his hand, knit his brows, and make the blade sing through the air. It was plain from every line of his body that our new hand was worth his salt."
"Every executive worth his salt has his own private charity, ranging all the way from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to raising money for organizations concerned with better sex education in our public schools."
"Surely any "science" worth its salt ought to try to be true to its name and be as objective as it can, make careful measurements, count something."

Etymology

First attested in 1805. Perhaps referencing the derivation of the word salary from Latin sal (“salt”), which is correct (though the related idea that soldiers were paid in salt is not). Or more generally from the fact that salt was a fairly valuable commodity in pre-modern times.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈwɝθ wʌnz ˈsɔlt/
British English: /ˈwɜːθ wʌnz ˈsɒlt/

Phrases

not worth salt

Frequently Paired Words

not worth salt

Synonyms

worth one's weight in salt

Questions

How do you pronounce worth one's salt?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈwɝθ wʌnz ˈsɔlt/.
What does worth one's salt mean?: Adept or competent, especially at one's occupation.
Where does worth one's salt come from?: First attested in 1805. Perhaps referencing the derivation of the word salary from Latin sal (“salt”), which is correct (though the related idea that soldiers were paid in salt is not). Or more generally from the fact that salt was a fairly valuable commodity in pre-modern times.

How to pronounce worth one's salt

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