rare

¹

[ rair ]

adjective

, rar·er, rar·est.

1. coming or occurring far apart in time; unusual; uncommon: His visits are rare occasions.

   a rare disease;

   His visits are rare occasions.

   Synonyms: singular, extraordinary, exceptional

   Antonyms: common

2. thinly distributed over an area; few and widely separated:

   Lighthouses are rare on that part of the coast.

   Synonyms: infrequent, sparse

   Antonyms: frequent

3. having the component parts not closely compacted together; not dense: lightheaded from the rare mountain air.

   rare gases;

   lightheaded from the rare mountain air.

4. unusually great:

   a rare display of courage.

5. unusually excellent; admirable; fine:

   She showed rare tact in inviting them.

   Synonyms: inimitable, incomparable, choice

   Antonyms: inferior

rare

²

[ rair ]

adjective

, rar·er, rar·est.

1. (of meat) cooked just slightly:

   He likes his steak rare.

rare

³

[ rair ]

verb (used without object)

, Older Use.

, rared, rar·ing.

1. rear ²( def 6 ).

rare

¹

/ rɛə /

adjective

1. (of meat, esp beef) very lightly cooked

rare

²

/ rɛə /

adjective

1. not widely known; not frequently used or experienced; uncommon or unusual

   a rare word

2. occurring seldom

   a rare appearance

3. not widely distributed; not generally occurring

   a rare herb

4. (of a gas, esp the atmosphere at high altitudes) having a low density; thin; rarefied
5. uncommonly great; extreme

   kind to a rare degree

6. exhibiting uncommon excellence; superlatively good or fine

   rare skill

7. highly valued because of its uncommonness

   a rare prize

Derived Forms

• ˈrareness, noun

Other Words From

• rareness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of rare¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English rar(e), rer(e) “light, airy, loose,” from Latin rārus “loose, porous, wide apart, thin, infrequent”

Origin of rare²

First recorded in 1610–20; variant of earlier rear, Middle English rere, hrere, Old English hrēr “(of eggs) lightly boiled”

Word History and Origins

Origin of rare¹

Old English hrēr ; perhaps related to hreaw raw

Origin of rare²

C14: from Latin rārus sparse

Example Sentences

The team found that mandatory measures to reduce whale-ship collisions were very rare, overlapping just 0.54% of blue whale hotspots and 0.27% of humpback hotspots, and not overlapping any fin or sperm whale hotspots.

From Science Daily

It’s rare to see an oarfish up close in California; only 22 have washed ashore since 1901, according to UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

From Los Angeles Times

"By studying individual cells, we discovered unique and sometimes rare ways in which DNA damage is repaired."

From Science Daily

When Pes and his colleagues first visited Sardinia in the 1990s, they had speculated that the secret to the population’s longevity could be in their DNA—rare gene variants associated with an extended life span.

From Science Magazine

In isolated populations like Sardinia’s, where inbreeding was common, such rare variants can become more frequent, a phenomenon called the founder effect.

From Science Magazine

Related Words

• extraordinary
• limited
• occasional
• scarce
• singular
• strange
• subtle
• uncommon
• unique
• unlikely
• unthinkable
• unusual