dear
Meanings
Adjective
- High in price; expensive.
- Loved; lovable.
- Lovely; kind.
- Loving, affectionate, heartfelt
- Precious to or greatly valued by someone.
- Noble.
- Severe, or severely affected; sore.
- Fierce.
Noun
- A very kind, loving person.
- A beloved person.
- An affectionate, familiar term of address, such as used between husband and wife.
Verb
- To endear.
Adverb
- Dearly; at a high price.
Related
Similar words
Origin
- From Middle English dere, from Old English dīere, from Proto-Germanic *diurijaz. Cognate with Scots dere, deir, Saterland Frisian djuur, Dutch duur ("costly, precious"), German teuer ("costly, precious"), German Low German düür, Danish dyr ("expensive"), Swedish dyr ("expensive"), Norwegian dyr, Icelandic dýr ("expensive").
- From Middle English dere, from Old English dēor, dȳr, from Proto-Germanic *deuzaz. Cognate with the above
Modern English dictionary
Explore and search massive catalog of over 900,000 word meanings.
Word of the Day
Get a curated memorable word every day.
Challenge yourself
Level up your vocabulary by setting personal goals.
And much more
Try out Vedaist now.