/ ˈpreʃəs; NAmE / adjective , adverb
■ adjective
1.
rare and worth a lot of money :
a precious vase
The crown was set with precious jewels—diamonds, rubies and emeralds.
—see also precious metal , precious stone ➡ note at valuable
2.
valuable or important and not to be wasted :
Clean water is a precious commodity in that part of the world.
You're wasting precious time!
3.
loved or valued very much
SYN treasured :
precious memories / possessions
4.
[ only before noun ] ( informal ) used to show you are angry that another person thinks sth is very important :
I didn't touch your precious car!
5.
( disapproving ) ( especially of people and their behaviour ) very formal, exaggerated and not natural in what you say and do
SYN affected
► pre·cious·ness noun [ U ]:
the preciousness of an old friendship
His writings reveal an unattractive preciousness of style.
—see also preciosity
■ adverb
( informal ) ~ little / few used to emphasize the fact that there is very little of sth or that there are very few of sth :
There's precious little to do in this town.
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French precios , from Latin pretiosus of great value, from pretium price.