Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

rare°

adj. 1 uncommon, unfamiliar, unusual, exceptional, out of the

ordinary, extraordinary, atypical; scarce, unparalleled, choice,

recherch‚, phenomenal, infrequent, few and far between, sparse,

scanty, limited, seldom encountered or met with or seen; unique,

singular, one of a kind; Chiefly Brit thin on the ground: It

was rare to see Liz in such good humour. Specimens in such

perfect condition are rare. A copy of the first edition in this

condition is rare. 2 fine, good, admirable, excellent, choice,

select, special, first-rate, first-class, exquisite, superior,

superlative, peerless, unequalled, matchless, incomparable, in a

class by itself or herself or himself or themselves, sui

generis, outstanding; collectible or collectable: O, rare Ben

Jonson! On exhibit was a black pearl of rare beauty and

remarkable size. Consideration for others seems a rare quality

these days.

rareý

adj. underdone, undercooked, bleu(e), saignant(e): Do you want

your steak rare, medium, or well-done?

rarely

adv. seldom, infrequently, on rare occasions, hardly (ever),

scarcely (ever), almost never, Colloq once in a blue moon: He

rarely attends formal dinners at his club.

rarity

n. 1 curiosity, oddity, curio, collector's item, find,

treasure, conversation piece, Brit one-off, Colloq Brit oner:

Among the rarities in his collection is a stuffed dodo. 2

unusualness, uncommonness, rareness, uniqueness, scarcity: The

rarity of the first edition makes this book all the more

valuable.

rascal

n. imp, devil, scamp, mischief-maker; rapscallion, rogue,

scoundrel, cad, villain, blackguard, knave, good-for-nothing,

ne'er-do-well, wastrel, scapegrace, dastard, wretch, Colloq

scallywag or scalawag, Brit rotter, blighter, bounder: That

little rascal has eaten all the cherry tarts. They've caught the

rascals who were vandalizing parked cars.

rash°

adj. impetuous, impulsive, unthinking, thoughtless, foolhardy,

unconsidered, ill-considered, ill-advised, injudicious,

imprudent, indiscreet, precipitate, hasty, careless, heedless,

reckless, headlong, wild, madcap, hare-brained, hotheaded,

adventurous, quixotic, venturesome, audacious, bold, dashing,

brash, devil-may-care: It was rash of him to try to sail round

the world single-handed, but he did it.

rashý

n. 1 eruption, eczema, redness, efflorescence, dermatitis: One

of the symptoms of measles is a skin rash. 2 number(s),

quantity, lot(s), multitude, profusion, outbreak, series,

succession, spate, wave, flood, deluge, plague, epidemic:

There's been a rash of burglaries in the neighbourhood.

rasp

n. 1 grating, scrape, scraping, scratch, scratching, grinding,

stridulation: One could hear the rasp of the file as they tried

to cut through the door. 2 file, grater: The coarser rasp is

for use on wood.

--v. 3 scrape, abrade, grate, file: First, rasp the

horseradish, then combine the gratings with a little vinegar. 4

irritate, jar (upon), grate upon or against, rub (someone) (up)

the wrong way, nettle, irk, annoy, vex, wear on, get, Literary

gride: She has a rasping metallic voice that gets on my nerves.

5 croak, squawk, screech: The sergeant rasped out another

command and the company marched forward.

rate°

n. 1 measure, pace, gait, speed, velocity, Colloq clip: We

moved along at a pretty fast rate. Rates of production must

increase. 2 charge, price, fee, tariff, figure, amount; toll:

The rate for a hotel room has increased enormously in the past

few years. 3 percentage, scale, proportion: What is the current

rate of interest on government savings bonds? 4 Usually, -rate.

rank, grade, place, standing, status, position, class,

classification, kind, sort, type, rating, status, worth, value,

valuation, evaluation: After a few years, he had improved from

a second-rate typist to a first-rate secretary. 5 at any rate.

in any case, in any event, anyway, at all events, anyhow, under

any circumstances, regardless, notwithstanding: At any rate,

with their last child out of university, they have no more

worries about paying education costs.

--v. 6 rank, grade, class, classify, evaluate, estimate,

calculate, compute, count, reckon, judge, gauge, assess,

appraise, measure: How do you rate your chances of beating the

champion? 7 merit, be entitled to, deserve, be worthy of, have

a claim to: The play doesn't rate all the attention it's been

getting in the press. 8 count, place, measure: She rates very

high among her friends.

rateý

v. scold, berate, reprimand, rebuke, reproach, reprove, take to

task, upbraid, censure, Colloq bawl out, dress down, US and

Canadian chew out: I was rated severely for staying out after

midnight.

rather

adv. 1 quite, very, somewhat, fairly, moderately, to a certain

extent or degree or measure, to some extent or degree or

measure, more or less, pretty, slightly, Colloq sort of, kind

of: I suppose she was rather good-looking, but at that age I

didn't pay much attention to girls. This coffee tastes rather

strange. 2 preferably, sooner, instead, more readily or

willingly: Given an option, I choose to live alone rather than

marry. 3 would or Colloq US had rather. prefer, choose: Given

a choice, I would rather live alone.

ratify

v. approve, sanction, endorse, support, corroborate, uphold,

back (up), sustain, establish, validate, substantiate, verify,

--n. 3 Usually, ravages. destruction, damage, depredation(s),

devastation, wrecking, ruin, demolition: All about us we saw

the ravages of war.

rave

v. 1 rant, rage, storm, fulminate, roar, thunder, howl, yell,

caterwaul, yowl, bellow, shout, scream, fly off the handle,

Colloq flip one's top or lid, Slang raise hell: He kept raving

on about his coffee mug having been pinched. 2 rave about.

praise, laud, rhapsodize over, applaud, gush over: Bernard

can't stop raving about that new Thai restaurant.

--n. 3 praise, acclaim, favour, enthusiastic reception,

tribute, testimonial, encomium, bouquet, plaudits, accolade,

admiration, US hosanna: The play got raves in all the

newspapers when it opened. 4 rage, fashion, vogue, trend,

thing, last word, dernier cri, craze, mania, Colloq fad: The

rave that year was for stiletto heels. 5 party, fˆte, soir‚e,

Colloq do, Slang bash, blow-out, Brit rave-up , US wingding,

blast: Monica threw quite a rave to celebrate her new job.

ravine

n. gorge, canyon or ca¤on, pass, cleft, defile, gully or

gulley, valley, Brit dialect clough, Scots linn, US gap, gulch,

arroyo: At the spring thaw, torrents filled the ravines.

raving

adj. 1 mad, insane, berserk, raging, crazy, crazed, irrational,