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

Many common products, including plastics and detergents, rely on chemical reactions that depend on catalysts made from precious metals such as platinum.

From Science Daily

One clear beneficiary of the turmoil: precious metals.

From Barron's

One clear beneficiary of the turmoil: precious metals.

From Barron's

While stocks ended where they began, the real action came in precious metals, with investors rushing to gold and silver amid an increasingly uncertain geopolitical environment.

From Barron's

"When you know her memories are going and you have an opportunity to help her create the nicest ones ever, I think that's very precious," she said.

From BBC