treasure
[trezh-er]
- wealth or riches stored or accumulated, especially in the form of precious metals, money, jewels, or plate.
- wealth, rich materials, or valuable things.
- any thing or person greatly valued or highly prized: This book was his chief treasure.
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- to retain carefully or keep in store, as in the mind.
- to regard or treat as precious; cherish.
- to put away for security or future use, as money.
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Origin of treasure
1125–75; (noun) Middle English tresor < Old French < Latin thēsaurus storehouse, hoard (see thesaurus); (v.) Middle English, derivative of the noun
Synonyms
See more synonyms for treasure on Thesaurus.com1, 6. hoard. 5. value, esteem.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for treasure
Contemporary Examples
Storage containers hold a treasure trove of mascara, lipstick, blush, and other makeup.
Going to the library was like a treasure hunt, an expedition.
In the special, Workman plays the old man who, as a cabin boy, watched the pirates bury their treasure.
All Americans were included because the huzzahs focused on a treasure said to be held by every citizen: Liberty.
After Blumenfeld died his family feuded over his treasure trove of pictures and negatives.
Historical Examples
Where this treasure is, there, naturally enough, our hearts will be also.
The Conquest of FearBasil King
In other words, they bequeath us a treasure which we are free to enrich with our own discoveries.
The Conquest of FearBasil King
That something hidden away in my nature, like a treasure in a field, is Humility.
De ProfundisOscar Wilde
For all that, I know very well what a treasure I possess in Andrew the carpenter.
Rico and WiseliJohanna Spyri
And when I had recovered them all, even to the smallest, I took my treasure home.
Green MansionsW. H. Hudson
treasure
- wealth and riches, usually hoarded, esp in the form of money, precious metals, or gems
- a thing or person that is highly prized or valued
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- to prize highly as valuable, rare, or costly
- to store up and save; hoard
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Word Origin
C12: from Old French tresor, from Latin thēsaurus anything hoarded, from Greek thēsauros
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 treasure
n.
mid-12c., from Old French tresor "treasury, treasure" (11c.), from Gallo-Romance *tresaurus, from Latin thesaurus "treasury, treasure" (cf. Spanish, Italian tesoro), from Greek thesauros "store, treasure, treasure house" (see thesaurus). Replaced Old English goldhord. General sense of "anything valued" is recorded from c.1200. Treasure hunt is first recorded 1913. For treasure trove, see trove.
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v.
late 14c., "to amass treasure; to store up for the future," also figurative, from treasure (n.). Related: Treasured; treasuring.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper