precious

1 of 2

adjective

pre·​cious ˈpre-shəs 

1

: of great value or high price

precious jewels

2

: highly esteemed or cherished

a precious friend

3

: excessively refined : affected entry 2

precious manners

4

: great, thoroughgoing

a precious scoundrel

preciousness noun

precious

2 of 2

adverb

: very, extremely

has precious little to say

Synonyms

Adjective

• big-ticket
• costly
• dear
• expensive
• extravagant
• high
• high-end
• high-ticket
• premium
• priceless
• pricey
• pricy
• spendy [chiefly Northwest]
• ultraexpensive
• valuable

Examples of precious in a Sentence

Adjective

That so many of China's cleverest and most creative men and women had to sell their books and their most precious carvings and family seals to keep themselves alive, while corpulent nationalists and their friends dined well in local banquet halls, gave them some right to schadenfreude. —Simon Winchester, The Man Who Loved China, 2008

Of course, the war pronounces on us all. Some precious glee we seek is absent, the season less substantial, less likeable. —Richard Ford, Wall Street Journal, 14-15 June 2008

The world is, as usual, a frightening place to enter for all save the precious few impaired by inherited security. —David Mamet, True and False, 1997

… and, though to him those precious moments at the end of each day had symbolized the realization of his every hope, to her they had meant not a goddamn thing. —Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997

diamonds and other precious stones

We can save precious time by taking this shortcut.

They were able to be together for only a few precious hours.

the family's most precious moments

Adverb

She had precious little to say.

There are precious few hours of sunlight left.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Thousands of precious antiquities disappeared from Cambodia during decades of war and strife. —Defne Karabatur, Los Angeles Times, 6 Apr. 2024

The unabashed 48 mm case is made of the Swiss watchmaker’s reddish King Gold alloy and set with some 248 precious stones. —Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 6 Apr. 2024

But Morrison also gave submitting writers precious insight into the industry itself. —Longreads, 5 Apr. 2024

In Oregon, however, one tanker crash spilled its precious cargo into a river, which was actually the only place that could keep its load safe and sound. —Owen Bellwood / Jalopnik, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024

It’s also known to be more potent — container higher amounts of those precious fatty acids per ounce than fish oil. —Alyssa Edwards, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024

Imagine burning hours of your precious family time to send your child to a grueling classroom. —Emil Lim, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

The 30-year-old Colombian singer and his girlfriend, Susana Gomez, welcomed their first child together — a daughter named Paris Londoño Gomez — earlier this month, and Maluma took to Instagram to share a series of precious moments from his first few weeks of fatherhood. —Rania Aniftos, Billboard, 25 Mar. 2024

Now, a group of concerned people is organizing to express their interest in protecting the precious oasis and ensuring the preservation of the water connected to this place by the Big Sandy River, which feeds into other aquifers. —Trilce Estrada Olvera, The Arizona Republic, 25 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Adverb

Middle English, from Anglo-French precios, from Latin pretiosus, from pretium price — more at price entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

1595, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing precious

• precious little

Kids Definition

precious

adjective

pre·​cious

ˈpresh-əs

1

: of great value or high price

diamonds and other precious stones

2

: greatly loved : dear

precious memories

preciously adverb

preciousness noun

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English precious "of great value," from early French precios (same meaning), from Latin pretiosus (same meaning), from pretium "price, money" — related to price