preciosity
UK/ˌpɹɛʃiˈɒsəti/US/ˌpɹɛʃiˈɑsəti/
preciosity noun: the quality of being overly refined in an affected way (often used to describe speech or writing, but also visual art and dress).
Noun
preciosity (countable and uncountable, plural preciosities)
- The quality of being overly refined in an affected way (often used to describe speech or writing, but also visual art and dress).
- [Italian renaissance painter Neroccio] had the fastidiousness, the preciosity, the love of archaisms, of your true decadent.1902, R. Langton Douglas, A History of Siena, New York: E.P. Dutton, Chapter 18, p. 385
- It is […] a section of society where everybody talks and poses, where pedantry masquerades as knowledge, sentimentality as sentiment, and preciosity as delicacy and refinement;1914, Edouard Pailleron, translated by Barrett H. Clark and Hilmar Baukhage, The Art of Being Bored, New York: Samuel French, act I, page 6
- Synonyms:
- affectation, fastidiousness
- An instance of preciosity; something that is overly refined in an affected way.
- “O Father Master, is it possible! (exclaimed the Beneficiary ready to roll about the floor with laughing) is it possible that such preciosities are printed! […]”1772, José Francisco de Isla, translated by Thomas Nugent, The History of the Famous Preacher Friar Gerund de Campazas, London: T. Davies and W. Flexney, Volume 2, Book 6, Chapter 2, p. 471
- “Yes, mother mine,” she replied. (Sylvia was rather addicted to little preciosities of this kind.)1913, John Hay Beith (as Ian Hay), Happy-Go-Lucky, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, Book 3, Chapter 12, p. 151
- Synonyms:
- affectation
- The quality of being precious (of high value or worth).
- I must be forc’d to say somewhat of Margarites [i.e. pearls] themselves, and I am affraid I shall rather be struck with the deepest amazement and confusion, than be able to expresse their unspeakable worth and preciosity.1654, Michael Maier, “The Oyster”, in John Hall, transl., Lusus Serius, or, Serious Passe-Time, London: Humphrey Moseley, pages 38–39
- [The figurehead] was covered up with tow and sacking and so hidden under pretence of safety that none might discover the secret of its intrinsic preciosity.1902, Bram Stoker, The Mystery of the Sea, London: Heinemann, Appendix, pp. 490-491
- Synonyms:
- preciousness, value, worth
- Something of high value or worth.
- That which is rare (we know) is with all Nations precious, and what is precious they love to appropriate and transferr upon themselves as near as they can […]. So if there be any thing more costly then another, they will hang it on their Bodies […], such as their Ear-rings and Jewells. But these...1668, Henry More, Divine Dialogues, London: James Flesher, Dialogue 3, pages 374–375
- An honest Man that sits in our common Court of Justice, to decide there instead of the Sovereign according to the common Law and our Statutes, is an inestimable Preciosity for us […]1754, uncredited translator, The History of the Moravians by Heinrich Rimius, London: J. Robinson, Section 14, p. 90
- Synonyms:
- treasure
Examples of preciosity in a sentence
- He was dressed very well and carefully, she thought, and wondered whether Arthur’s preciosity in the matter of clothing influenced his staff.1926, Edgar Wallace, chapter 10, in The Black Abbot, New York: A.L. Burt, page 44:
- Nüssler did, one day, see this preciosity: a Crucifix, ebony bordered with gold, and the Body all of that metal, on the smallest of altars,—in Walrave's bedroom.1862, Thomas Carlyle, History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Called Frederick the Great, volume III, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC...
Synonyms of preciosity
Forms of preciosity
| plural | preciosities |
|---|
Origin of preciosity
From Middle English preciosite, from Middle French preciosité, from Latin pretiōsitās (“great value; high price”).
Questions about preciosity
- What does preciosity mean?
- Preciosity means the quality of being overly refined in an affected way (often used to describe speech or writing, but also visual art and dress).
- How do you use preciosity in a sentence?
- He was dressed very well and carefully, she thought, and wondered whether Arthur’s preciosity in the matter of clothing influenced his staff.
- What part of speech is preciosity?
- Preciosity is a noun.
- How do you pronounce preciosity?
- Preciosity is pronounced /ˌpɹɛʃiˈɒsəti/ (UK).
- What is the plural of preciosity?
- The plural of preciosity is preciosities.
Words near preciosity in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: preciosity (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “preciosity.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/preciosity. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.