rarity
Americannoun
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rarities
plural
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something rare, unusual, or uncommon.
Snowstorms are a rarity in the South.
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something esteemed or interesting in being rare, uncommon, or curious.
That folio is a rarity that will bring a good price.
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the state or quality of being rare.
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rare occurrence; infrequency.
Volcanic eruptions on the island occur with great rarity.
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unusual excellence.
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thinness, as of air or a gas.
noun
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a rare person or thing, esp something interesting or valued because it is uncommon
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the state or quality of being rare
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of rarity
1550–60; < Latin rāritās thinness, equivalent to rār ( us ) rare 1 + -itās -ity
Vocabulary lists containing rarity
"My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning
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"The Tempest," Vocabulary from Acts 1 and 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Whereas 10 to 30-plus years ago, it was so much more of a rarity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
It was odd enough that most people in the crowd were wearing fluorescent orange, but stranger still was this rarity: the sight of a group of diverse men full of hope.
From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2026
Their rarity and longevity make them especially valuable to researchers studying glacier retreat, changing ocean conditions and the risks posed by drifting ice in polar regions.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
None of it makes practical sense, which is rather the point: Presence has become rare, and rarity gives it value.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
He’s half Puerto Rican, which is a bit of a rarity around here.
From "Boy21" by Matthew Quick
The diehards chase the rarities, Springsteen changes songs in and out as the spirit moves him, and there was one tour where he took requests via sign from the audience.
From Salon ● May 28, 2026
That upward spiral has meant that fewer and fewer individuals can actually afford to own even one of these teams—and that sports conglomerates went from rarities to the new normal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2025
We also have rarities like Australian finger lime, which gives a pinkie-size fruit that you cut in half, squeezing tart pearls into your mouth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2024
Known as ‘trial pieces’ or a ‘pattern coins’, such rarities are typically sought by serious collectors.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2024
They are not just a few Croesus-like rarities.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
