ransom

*king's ransom

Fig. a great deal of money. (To pay an amount as large as one might have to pay to get back a king held for ransom. *Typically: cost ~; pay ~; spend~.) I would like to buy a nice watch, but I don't want to pay a king's ransom for it. It's a lovely house. I bet it cost a king's ransom.

hold someone for ransom

to demand money for the return of a person who has been kidnapped. The kidnappers held me for ransom, but no one would pay. We will hold Timmy for ransom and hope that the police don't find us.

See also: hold

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a king's ransom

a very large amount of money (not used with the ) She was wearing a diamond necklace which must have been worth a king's ransom.

hold somebody to ransom

to force someone to do something by putting them in a situation where something bad will happen to them if they do not Some people regarded the miners' strike as the union holding the nation to ransom.

See also: hold

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a king's ransom

a large amount of money A visit to one of those amusement parks can cost a king's ransom.

Usage notes: often used with worth or cost, as in the example