costare
cost
verb koh-STAH-reh Less Common
Origin: from Latin constare, 'to stand firm, be settled'
Usage Note
Costare is intransitive and usually third person: quanto costa? ('how much does it cost?'). It takes essere in compound tenses (è costato molto) and figures in costare un occhio della testa ('to cost an arm and a leg', literally 'an eye of the head').
Examples
"Quanto costa questo libro?"
Natural Translation
How much does this book cost?
Literal Translation
How-much costs this book?

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