- See Also:
- - rapt
  - raptor
  - raptorial
  - rapture
  - rapture of the deep
  - raptured
  - rapturous
  - raptus
  - RAR
  - rara avis
  - rare
  - rare book
  - rare earth
  - rare gas
  - rare-earth element
  - rarebit
  - raree show
  - rarefaction
  - rarefied
  - rarefy
  - rarely
- Recent searches:
- View All

rare

UK:^*^*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈrɛə^r/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/rɛr/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(râr)

Inflections of 'rare' (adj):

rarer: adj comparative

rarest: adj superlative

Inflections of 'rare' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

rares: v 3rd person singular

raring: v pres p

rared: v past

rared: v past p

rare¹ /rɛr/USA pronunciation adj., rar•er, rar•est.

very uncommon:a rare disease.
light;
thin;
having the parts not tightly packed together:The air was rare in the mountains.
unusually great:[before a noun]a rare display of courage.

rare•ness, n. [uncountable]

rare² /rɛr/USA pronunciation adj., rar•er, rar•est.

cooked so as to be still red on the inside:rare steak.

rare•ness, n. [uncountable]

rare¹ (râr),USA pronunciation adj., rar•er, rar•est.

coming or occurring far apart in time;
unusual;
uncommon:a rare disease; His visits are rare occasions.
thinly distributed over an area;
few and widely separated:Lighthouses are rare on that part of the coast.
having the component parts not closely compacted together;
not dense:rare gases; lightheaded from the rare mountain air.
unusually great:a rare display of courage.
unusually excellent;
admirable;
fine:She showed rare tact in inviting them.

Latin rārus loose, wide apart, thin, infrequent
Middle English 1350–1400

rare′ness, n.

rare² (râr),USA pronunciation adj., rar•er, rar•est.

(of meat) cooked just slightly:He likes his steak rare.

variant of earlier rear, Middle English rere, Old English hrēr lightly boiled 1645–55

rare′ness, n.

rare³ (râr),USA pronunciation v.i., rared, rar•ing. [Older Use.]

Slang Termsrear² (def. 6).

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

rare /rɛə/ adj

not widely known; not frequently used or experienced; uncommon or unusual: a rare word
not widely distributed; not generally occurring: a rare herb
(of a gas, esp the atmosphere at high altitudes) having a low density; thin; rarefied
uncommonly great; extreme: kind to a rare degree
exhibiting uncommon excellence; superlatively good or fine: rare skill

Etymology: 14th Century: from Latin rārus sparseˈrareness n

rare /rɛə/ adj

(of meat, esp beef) very lightly cooked

Etymology: Old English hrēr; perhaps related to hreaw raw

'rare' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):

aberrant - acarid - accolade - albumen - alit - amative - argon - around - Aussie - autarchy - awoke - aye-aye - basset - Berkshire - bi- - bibliopole - bird - blackwater fever - bongo - bowhead - bric-a-brac - capuchin - Cheddar - chrysoberyl - clew - comestible - condor - conduit - crease - creese - crux - cyma - Danzig - denigrate - devest - dexterous - didymium - doat - dotterel - Durham - earth - eclipsis - egis - essence - ether - ferula - fictive - foursquare - frisky - fylfot

In Lists: Top 2000 English words, Dining terms, PET Vocabulary List - R, more...

Synonyms: out of the ordinary, uncommon, unusual, unique, abnormal, more...

Collocations: rare [antiques, books, collectibles, baseball cards], have a rare [disorder, disease], I [like, prefer] my steak (medium) rare, more...

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "rare" in the title:

a case who's very rare
A good friend is rare...<isn’t><is> it?
a rare butterfly
a rare hand at
a rare human population
a rare occurance, my stratum
a rare old coin to add to your collection
a rare old muddle
a rare white marble
Absent vs. Rare vs. Extinct
Adjective order: a rare incredibly beautiful artifact ... an incredibly beautiful rare artifact
all but the rare
although rare
at his (very rare) best?
at rare intervals
basking in this rare light
Blue rare
Bow in this rare context, at least for me.
but called it a “too rare” step
But <it> is the rare research that
but the story is rare
By all my rare old historic associations, breathed Bury;
Chinese medicine have used or use a rare plant to cure...
common mistake (rare situations)
disclosed a <soul> of rare devotion
Down on the rare breed list
dry or runny/rare?
extremely rare and unusual stone and sterling silver cufflinks
far from rare...
far rarer/far more rare
more...

Visit the English Only Forum.
Help WordReference: Ask in the forums yourself.

Look up "rare" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "rare" at dictionary.com

Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

URL: https://www.wordreference.com/definition/rare

⇱ rare - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

rare