rarity
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rar·i·ty
(râr′ĭ-tē)n. pl. rar·i·ties
1. Something rare.
2. The quality or state of being rare; infrequency of occurrence.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
rarity
(ˈrɛərɪtɪ)n, pl -ties
1. a rare person or thing, esp something interesting or valued because it is uncommon
2. the state or quality of being rare
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
rar•i•ty
(ˈrɛər ɪ ti)n., pl. -ties.
1. the state or quality of being rare.
2. something rare or extremely uncommon.
3. rare occurrence; infrequency.
4. thinness, as of air or a gas.
[1550–60; < Latin]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
Rarity
See Also: ORIGINALITY
- Exclusive as a mail box —Raymond Chandler
- He’s unusual all right … like the last of the orange flamingos —Saul Bellow
- A miracle as great as art —Charles Bukowski
- (And what is so) rare as a day in June —James Russell Lowell One of Lowell’s most memorable lines!
- (To think of nothing benign to memorize is as) rare as feeling no personal blemish —W. H. Auden
- Rare as a man without self-pity —Stephen Vincent Benét
- Rare and wonderful feeling, like the first moments of love —George Garrett
- Rare as a black swan —Anon
This probably evolved from “Rare to be found as black swans” featured in Daniel Rogers’ seventeenth century Matrimonial Honors.
- Rare as a Cockney accent at Eton —Anon
- Rare as a man without self-pity —Stephen Vincent Benét
- Rare as an Emperor moth —Lawrence Durrell
- Rare as a New York City subway train without graffiti —Elyse Sommer
- Rare as a nine dollar bill —Anon
- Rare as a politician on the stump who doesn’t make promises —Anon
A partner to this one: “Rare as a politician who lives up to his campaign promises.”
- Rare as a well-spent life -Anon
- (A lucky man is) rare as a white crow —Juvenal
- Rare as a winter swallow —Honoré de Balzac
- Rare as discretion in a gossip —Anon
- Rare as humility in a grizzly bear —Julian Ralph
- (Movies like Paul Mayersberg’s Captive are as) rare as peacocks’ teeth —Vincent Canby, New York Times, April 3, 1987
- Rare as rocking horse manure —Anon
- Rare as snow in July —Anon
Another modern simile which can be traced to an earlier form: “Like snow at Midsummer, exceeding rare.”
- Rare in life as black lightning on a blue sky —Fitz-Greene Halleck
- (The liberal “effete snobs” that Spiro T. Agnew railed against are as) rare today as Republicans on the welfare rolls —Barbara Ehrenreich
- Scarce as below par golf scores —Anon
- Scarce as fat men in a long-distance marathon —Anon
- Scarce as a six figure advance for a first novel by an unknown author —Elyse Sommer
- [Money … was as] scarce as frogs’ teeth, crabs’ tails or eunuchs’ whiskers —Pat Barr
Barr’s colorful multiple simile refers to the scarcity of money in Korea during the late nineteenth century when the heroine of her book, Curious Life For a Lady, was there.
- Scarce as ice cream vendors on a snowy day in January —Anon
The comparative twists on this are endless, for example: “Scarce as lemonade stands in the desert,” or “Scarce as women in fur coats in ninety degree weather.”
- Scarce as low-cost, high profit ideas for an untapped market —Anon
- Scarce as squirrels at a busy city street crossing —Elyse Sommer
- Scarce as the buffalo that once roamed the prairie —Enid Nemy, New York Times, July 6, 1986
Nemy likened the buffalo scarcity to newsy letters.
- Scarce as the cardinal virtues —Ross Macdonald
- Scarce as two dollar gourmet lunches —Anon
- (One of the kindest-natured persons that I ever knew on this earth, where kind people are) as rare as black eagles or red deer —Ouida
Similes Dictionary, 1st Edition. © 1988 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
Noun | 1. | rarity - noteworthy scarcity scarceness, scarcity - a small and inadequate amount |
2. | rarity - a rarified quality; "the tenuity of the upper atmosphere" | |
3. | rarity - something unusual -- perhaps worthy of collecting object, physical object - a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow; "it was full of rackets, balls and other objects" collectable, collectible - things considered to be worth collecting (not necessarily valuable or antique) collector's item, piece de resistance, showpiece - the outstanding item (the prize piece or main exhibit) in a collection |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
rarity
noun
1. curio, find, treasure, pearl, one-off, curiosity, gem, collector's item Other rarities include an interview with Presley.
2. uncommonness, scarcity, infrequency, unusualness, shortage, strangeness, singularity, sparseness This indicates the rarity of such attacks.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
Translations
شَيئٌ نادِرنُدْرَه
vzácnostrarita
sjældenhed
haruldus
harvinaisuus
raritetrijetkost
kuriózumritkaság
fágæti, sjaldgæfur hluturòaî aî vera sjaldgæfur
raritas
retenybėretumas
biały krukrarytasrzadkość
rarita
rarhetraritetsällsynthet
azlıknadir şeynadirlik
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
rarity
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
rare
(ˈreə) adjective1. not done, found, seen etc very often; uncommon. a rare flower; a rare occurrence.
2. (of meat) only slightly cooked. I like my steak rare.
ˈrareness nounˈrarely adverb
not often. I rarely go to bed before midnight.
ˈrarity noun1. the state of being uncommon.
2. (plural ˈrarities) something which is uncommon. This stamp is quite a rarity.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.