precious

[presh-uhs]

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.

noun

1. a dearly beloved person; darling.

adverb

1. extremely; very.

   She wastes precious little time.

precious

/ 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!

adverb

1. informal,  (intensifier)

   there's precious little left

Other Word Forms

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of precious¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of precious¹

C13: from Old French precios, from Latin pretiōsus valuable, from pretium price, value

Synonym Study

See valuable.

Example Sentences

Gold miner Newmont tumbles as prices of the precious metal fall Tuesday.

Read more on Barron's

While their next moves will depend on underlying precious metal prices, it’s anyone’s guess how big those moves might be.

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With the city under his leadership, the Jewish community will stand unafraid, contributing the best of ourselves—along with every other precious community—to the melting pot that is our beloved New York.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The brazen weekend theft of precious jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris may seem like something straight out of a Hollywood movie.

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Unlike Picasso paintings or Rolex watches, stolen gems can be broken out of their jewelry settings and their gold settings can be melted down because such commodities retain value as precious metals and gems.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal