rarest
superlative form of rare: most rare
• Arters, arrest, raster, raters, retars, starer, starre, tarres, terras
Source: Wiktionary
Rare, a. Etym: [Cf. Rather, Rath.]
Definition: Early. [Obs.] Rude mechanicals that rare and late Work in the market place. Chapman.
Rare, a. [Compar. Rarer; superl. Rarest.] Etym: [Cf. AS. hrer, or E. rare early.]
Definition: Nearly raw; partially cooked; not thoroughly cooked; underdone; as, rare beef or mutton. New-laid eggs, which Baucis' busy care Turned by a gentle fire, and roasted rare. Dryden.
Note: This word is in common use in the United States, but in England its synonym underdone is preferred.
Rare, a. [Compar. Rarer; superl. Rarest.] Etym: [F., fr. L. rarus thin, rare.]
1. Not frequent; seldom met with or occurring; unusual; as, a rare event.
2. Of an uncommon nature; unusually excellent; valuable to a degree seldom found. Rare work, all filled with terror and delight. Cowley. Above the rest I judge one beauty rare. Dryden.
3. Thinly scattered; dispersed. Those rare and solitary, three in flocks. Milton.
4. Characterized by wide separation of parts; of loose texture; not thick or dense; thin; as, a rare atmosphere at high elevations. Water is nineteen times lighter, and by consequence nineteen times rarer, than gold. Sir I. Newton.
Syn.
– Scarce; infrequent; unusual; uncommon; singular; extraordinary; incomparable.
– Rare, Scarce. We call a thing rare when but few examples, specimens, or instances of it are ever to be met with; as, a rare plant. We speak of a thing as scarce, which, though usually abundant, is for the time being to be had only in diminished quantities; as, a bad harvest makes corn scarce. A perfect union of wit and judgment is one of the rarest things in the world. Burke. When any particular piece of money grew very scarce, it was often recoined by a succeeding emperor. Addison.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
29 May 2025
(adjective) characterized by careful evaluation and judgment; “a critical reading”; “a critical dissertation”; “a critical analysis of Melville’s writings”
Coffee dates back to the 9th century. Goat herders in Ethiopia noticed their goats seem to be “dancing” after eating berries from a particular shrub. They reported it to the local monastery, and a monk made a drink out of it. The monk found out he felt energized and kept him awake at night. That’s how the first coffee drink was born.
