precious

American  

[presh-uhs] / ˈprɛʃ əs /

adjective

1. of high price or great value; very valuable or costly.

   precious metals.

2. highly esteemed for some spiritual, nonmaterial, or moral quality.

   precious memories.

3. dear; beloved.

   a precious child.

   Synonyms:

   darling

4. affectedly or excessively delicate, refined, or nice.

   precious manners.

5. flagrant; gross.

   a precious fool.

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noun

1. a dearly beloved person; darling.

adverb

1. extremely; very.

   She wastes precious little time.

precious British  

/ ˈprɛʃəs /

adjective

1. beloved; dear; cherished

2. very costly or valuable

3. held in high esteem, esp in moral or spiritual matters

4. very fastidious or affected, as in speech, manners, etc

5. informal worthless

   you and your precious ideas!

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adverb

1. informal (intensifier)

   there's precious little left

Related Words

See valuable.

Other Word Forms

• nonprecious adjective
• nonpreciously adverb
• nonpreciousness noun
• preciously adverb
• preciousness noun
• unprecious adjective
• unpreciously adverb
• unpreciousness noun

Etymology

Origin of precious

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English preciose (from Old French precios ), from Latin pretiōsus “costly, valuable,” equivalent to preti(um) “price, value, worth” ( price ) + -ōsus -ous

Example Sentences

The precious metal will rise 35% to $6,200 an ounce by the end of June, before scaling back to $5,900 an ounce by the end of the year, UBS forecast.

From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026

“The precious metal appears to have found some support near $4,500 an ounce, with investors taking advantage of cheaper gold as inflation worries weighed on the metal,” analysts at ANZ said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

Spurs don't play again until 12 April and that gives him precious time to assess his squad.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

Traders also appeared to be making bets that the recent sell-off in both precious and industrial metals could be soon nearing an end.

From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026

As she shook water off her body the other women leaned away, but behind the reeds Dodzi leaned forward as if in a trance, to catch the precious shower.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo