Precious

Precious
Precious Pre"cious, a. [OF. precious, precius, precios, F. pr['e]cieux, L. pretiosus, fr. pretium price, worth, value. See {Price}.] 1. Of great price; costly; as, a precious stone. ``The precious bane.'' --Milton. [1913 Webster]

2. Of great value or worth; very valuable; highly esteemed; dear; beloved; as, precious recollections. [1913 Webster]

She is more precious than rules. --Prov. iii. 15. [1913 Webster]

Many things which are most precious are neglected only because the value of them lieth hid. --Hooker. [1913 Webster]

Note: Also used ironically; as, a precious rascal. [1913 Webster]

3. Particular; fastidious; overnice; overrefined. Cf. {Pr['e]cieuse}, {Preciosity}. [1913 Webster]

Lest that precious folk be with me wroth. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]

Elaborate embroidery of precious language. --Saintsbury. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

{Precious metals}, the uncommon and highly valuable metals, esp. gold and silver.

{Precious stones}, gems; jewels. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • Precious — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda «Precious» Sencillo de Depeche Mode del álbum Playing the Angel Lado B «Free» Publicación 3 de octubre de 2005 en …   Wikipedia Español

  • Precious — Données clés Titre original Precious Réalisation Lee Daniels Scénario Geoffrey S. Fletcher d après le roman de « Sapphire » Acteurs principaux Gabourey Sidibe Mo Nique Paula …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Precious — may refer to:In music: * Precious (band), a British band * Precious (Chanté Moore album) * Precious (Cubic U album) * Precious (Ours album) * Precious (Loïs Lane album), an album by Loïs Lane * Precious (Yuna Ito song), from the album Heart *… …   Wikipedia

  • Precious — bezeichnet: Precious (Band), britische Pop Gruppe Precious – Das Leben ist kostbar, US amerikanisches Filmdrama (2009) Precious ist der Name folgender Personen: Precious Dede (* 1980), nigerianische Fußballspielerin Precious Wilson (* 1957),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • precious — ► ADJECTIVE 1) having great value. 2) greatly loved or treasured. 3) ironic considerable: a precious lot you know! 4) derogatory affectedly concerned with elegant or refined language or manners. ● precious little (or few) Cf. ↑precious little …   English terms dictionary

  • precious — [adj1] favorite, valued adored, beloved, cherished, darling, dear, dearest, idolized, inestimable, loved, pet, prized, treasured; concepts 529,567 Ant. disfavored, useless, valueless, worthless precious [adj2] expensive; rare choice, costly, dear …   New thesaurus

  • precious — [presh′əs] adj. [ME < OFr precios < L pretiosus < pretium, PRICE] 1. of great price or value; costly 2. of great desirability; held in high esteem [precious rights] 3. beloved; dear 4. very fastidious, overrefined, or affected, as in… …   English World dictionary

  • precious — index inestimable, invaluable, premium, priceless, rare, sterling, valuable Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton …   Law dictionary

  • precious — (adj.) late 13c., from O.Fr. precios (11c., Mod.Fr. précieux), from L. pretiosus costly, valuable, from pretium value, worth, price (see PRICE (Cf. price)). Meaning over refined first recorded late 14c. Precieuse a woman aiming at refined… …   Etymology dictionary

  • precious — *costly, expensive, dear, valuable, invaluable, priceless Analogous words: *choice, exquisite, recherché, rare: valued, prized, appreciated, cherished (see APPRECIATE) …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

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