precious

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

adj. priceless, costly; precise, overrefined, overnice; beloved, dear. See dearness, affectation. Ant., worthless, cheap.

II

(Roget's IV) modif.

1. [Valuable]

Syn. high-priced, costly, dear; see expensive , valuable 1 .

2. [Beloved]

Syn. cherished, inestimable, prized; see beloved , favorite .

3. [Refined and delicate]

Syn. overrefined, overnice, fragile, fastidious, affected, studied; see also dainty 1 , refined 2 .

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) a.

1. costly valuable, priceless, inestimable, expensive, high-priced, rich.

2. beloved dear, loved, adored, treasured, cherished, worshipped, idolized, darling, esteemed, favorite.

3. fastidious overrefined, particular, finicky, overnice, fussy, affected, unnatural, pretentious, flowery, dainty.

ANT.: 1. cheap, worthless. 2. despised, hated. 3. sloppy, careless, cloddish

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I adjective 1. Of great value: costly, inestimable, invaluable, priceless, valuable, worthy. Idioms: beyond price, of great price. See VALUE. 2. Regarded with much love and tenderness: beloved, darling, dear, loved. See LOVE. 3. Artificially genteel: affected, artificial, mannered. Informal: la-di-da. See GOOD, HONEST, PLAIN, TRUE. II noun A person who is much loved: beloved, darling, dear, honey, love, minion, sweet, sweetheart, truelove. Informal: sweetie. Idiom: light of one's life. See LOVE.