dear
adjective · noun · adverb
Simple meaning
Precious to or greatly valued by someone.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dirIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdɪɹ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Precious to or greatly valued by someone.
A formal way to start (possibly after my) addressing somebody at the beginning of a letter, memo etc.
A formal way to start (often after my) addressing somebody one likes or regards kindly.
An ironic way to start (often after my) addressing an inferior or someone one dislikes.
Loving, affectionate, heartfelt
irelanduk
High in price; expensive.
noun
An affectionate, familiar term of address, such as used between husband and wife.
A beloved person; used as terms of endearment
A very kind, loving person.
A sweet innocent mild-mannered person (especially a child)
An elderly person, especially a woman.
adverb
Dearly; at a high price.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Precious to or greatly valued by someone.
Used this way, dear is a reasonably familiar word with a mildly favourable edge. It carries more force than its gentler alternatives. It sounds natural in ordinary conversation and in expressive writing alike.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Strong
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Positive and appreciative
- Usage feel
- Everyday but emotionally strong
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use dear
- “My dear friend sent me a lovely card for my birthday.”adjective
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.