precious

[presh-uh s]

See more synonyms for precious on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of high price or great value; very valuable or costly: precious metals.
highly esteemed for some spiritual, nonmaterial, or moral quality: precious memories.
dear; beloved: a precious child.

affectedly or excessively delicate, refined, or nice: precious manners.
flagrant; gross: a precious fool.

noun

a dearly beloved person; darling.

adverb

extremely; very: She wastes precious little time.

Origin of precious

1250–1300; Middle English preciose (< Old French precios) < Latin pretiōsus costly, valuable, equivalent to preti(um) price, value + -ōsus -ous

Related formspre·cious·ly, adverbpre·cious·ness, nounnon·pre·cious, adjectivenon·pre·cious·ly, adverbnon·pre·cious·ness, nounun·pre·cious, adjectiveun·pre·cious·ly, adverbun·pre·cious·ness, noun

Synonyms for precious

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1. See valuable. 3. darling, cherished.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for preciousness

majesty, brilliance, splendor, grandeur, luster, effulgence, radiance, pomp, richness, pageantry, brightness, resplendence, fineness, magnificence, sublimity, preciousness, gorgeousness

Examples from the Web for preciousness

Contemporary Examples of preciousness

What does the preciousness of our white flesh represent in contrast to burnt brown bodies created by our bombs?
Thank Goodness We’ve Got A Plan! Let the War Begin!
Michael Carson
September 14, 2014
He stripped it of its preciousness, embraced its commercial, mass appeal, and turned the designer into a celebrity.
When Fashion Met Art: Andy Warhol & Halston’s Decades-Long Friendship
Raquel Laneri
May 21, 2014
Some of his preciousness is a veneer, however, for his fatalistic streak.
Ralph Fiennes Discusses ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel,’ J. Lo, and That ‘Seinfeld’ Episode
Marlow Stern
March 6, 2014

Historical Examples of preciousness

A tale for the young, illustrative of the preciousness of Scripture promises.
Hunter's Marjory
Margaret Bruce Clarke
This she can do now and then; but even so her new lover has yet to learn her preciousness.
Oxford
Frederick Douglas How
Let it be so, with an ever-growing sense of the preciousness of the work of intercession.
To My Younger Brethren
Handley C. G. Moule
Now they wore a glamour and a preciousness that was bound up with life itself.
Miss Mapp
Edward Frederic Benson
The idea of preciousness, as well as that of protection, is included in the word.
The Expositor's Bible: The Psalms, Vol. 2
Alexander Maclaren

British Dictionary definitions for preciousness

precious

adjective

beloved; dear; cherished
very costly or valuable
held in high esteem, esp in moral or spiritual matters
very fastidious or affected, as in speech, manners, etc
informal worthlessyou and your precious ideas!

adverb

informal (intensifier)there's precious little left

Derived Formspreciously, adverbpreciousness, noun

Word Origin for precious

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for preciousness

precious

adj.

mid-13c., from Old French precios "precious, costly, honorable, of great worth" (11c., Modern French précieux), from Latin pretiosus "costly, valuable," from pretium "value, worth, price" (see price (n.)). Meaning "over-refined" in English first recorded late 14c. In Johnson's day, it also had a secondary inverted sense of "worthless." Related: Preciously; preciousness.

precious

"beloved or dear person or object," 1706, from precious (adj.).