| English Dictionary |
PRECIOUSNESS
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Dictionary entry overview: What does preciousness mean?
• PRECIOUSNESS (noun)
The noun PRECIOUSNESS has 3 senses:
1. the quality possessed by something with a great price or value
2. the positive quality of being precious and beyond value
3. the quality of being fastidious or excessively refined
Familiarity information: PRECIOUSNESS used as a noun is uncommon.
Dictionary entry details
Sense 1
Meaning:
The quality possessed by something with a great price or value
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Synonyms:
costliness; dearness; preciousness
Hypernyms ("preciousness" is a kind of...):
expensiveness (the quality of being high-priced)
Derivation:
precious (of high worth or cost)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The positive quality of being precious and beyond value
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Synonyms:
invaluableness; preciousness; pricelessness; valuableness
Hypernyms ("preciousness" is a kind of...):
value (the quality (positive or negative) that renders something desirable or valuable)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "preciousness"):
gold (something likened to the metal in brightness or preciousness or superiority etc.)
Derivation:
precious (characterized by feeling or showing fond affection for)
Sense 3
Meaning:
The quality of being fastidious or excessively refined
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Synonyms:
preciosity; preciousness
Hypernyms ("preciousness" is a kind of...):
affectedness (the quality of being false or artificial (as to impress others))
Derivation:
precious (obviously contrived to charm)
Context examples
He handled the sack lovingly, and with due appreciation of its preciousness carried it out to his sled.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
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