rarer

ADJECTIVE

exceptional, infrequent

Synonyms

STRONGEST

extraordinary limited occasional scarce singular strange subtle uncommon unique unlikely unthinkable unusual

WEAK

attenuate attenuated deficient few few and far between flimsy inconceivable isolated light out of the ordinary rarefied recherché scanty scattered seldom semioccasional short sparse sporadic subtile tenuous thin unfrequent unheard of unimaginable unwonted

Antonyms

STRONGEST

common commonplace familiar frequent normal ordinary regular standard sufficient usual

WEAK

cheap typical well-done worthless

ADJECTIVE

precious, excellent

Synonyms

STRONGEST

delicate exquisite great priceless rich unique

WEAK

admirable choice dainty elegant extreme fine incomparable invaluable matchless peerless recherché select superb superlative

Antonyms

STRONGEST

poor serious weak

WEAK

cheap common frequent ordinary regular typical usual well-done worthless

ADJECTIVE

not fully cooked

Synonyms

WEAK

bloody half-cooked half-raw moderately done nearly raw not done rarely done red undercooked underdone

Antonyms

WEAK

cheap common frequent ordinary regular typical usual well-done worthless

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Total solar eclipses occur somewhere on Earth roughly every 18 months, but witnessing one from the same location is much rarer.

From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026

Live jazz is rare and getting rarer in Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026

As the smooth highway north of Seville stretched into the vastness of pastoral Extremadura, the chances of finding a lynx, which remains rarer than the snow leopard or the Bengal tiger, felt impossibly small.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

Women may be particularly vulnerable to the drugs’s side effects, which can also include nausea, diarrhea, migraines and rarer cases of pancreatitis.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026

By a similar process in German, the rarer term, Naturgesetz, comes to mean primarily law of nature, while the commoner term, Naturrecht, continues to mean natural law.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton