Also means
costly
Usage Note
Dispendioso emphasises the idea of something that consumes significant resources — time, money, or energy — and carries a slightly formal or literary tone compared to costoso or caro. It can describe processes (un processo dispendioso = a resource-intensive process) as well as goods. The root dispendio (expenditure, waste) is a good memory anchor.
Examples
"Ristrutturare quella casa è stato molto dispendioso."
Natural Translation
Renovating that house was very costly.

Free starter pack
Building your Italian vocabulary?
Get the 100 most common Italian words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.
Related Words
Explore Italian by topic
ItalianNow
5 min read