Rare is an adjective describing something uncommon or not widely occurring. It can also imply a degree of infrequency, scarcity, or exceptional quality in certain contexts. In addition, it may describe meat cooked to a minimal degree of doneness. The term often carries nuanced connotations of value, exclusivity, or novelty depending on usage.
"That species is rare in the wild and needs protection."
"Her rare books collection is a museum of bibliographic history."
"The steak was served rare, still pink in the center."
"In a rare moment of honesty, he admitted the mistake.”], "
Rare traces its roots to the Middle English word raere, from Old French rar(e) meaning scarce or thin, and ultimately from Latin rarus meaning thin, scattered, or loose. The word evolved in the 13th–14th centuries with senses extending from physical thinness or sparsity to unusualness or infrequency. In culinary use, rare developed as a descriptor for meat that is lightly cooked, preserving inner moisture and color, a sense that emerged in culinary contexts by the 17th–18th centuries as refined dining terminology. The term’s semantic shift toward “not common” aligns with broader Germanic and Romance roots indicating scarcity. First known use in English literature appears in the late medieval period, with early texts applying rare to describe objects or occurrences that are not frequently seen, progressing to modern usage where it frequently marks premium or distinctive attributes in goods, flavor, and phenomena.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Rare" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Rare"
-are sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Say /rɛər/ (US) or /rɛə/ (UK) with a single stressed syllable. Start with a clear /r/ to lift the tongue, then glide into a long, tense vowel cluster /ɛə/ as in ‘air.’ The mouth forms a mid-open position: lips are unrounded or slightly spread, jaw relaxed, and the tip of the tongue touches the alveolar ridge briefly at the onset before relaxing into the vowel. You’ll hear a smooth, gentle diphthong; avoid ending with a hard /r/ if the speaker’s dialect is non-rhotic. Practice with a quick, steady release to maintain crispness. IPA: US /ˈrɛər/; UK /ˈreə/; AU /ˈreə/.
Two frequent errors: (1) treating /ɛə/ as two separate vowels, producing a choppy /ɛ-ə/ rather than a smooth glide; (2) misplacing the tongue with a rounded lip posture, producing a rounded /ɔ/ or a closed /ɜː/ sound. Correction: maintain a relaxed jaw, start with /r/ and glide into /ɛə/ in one fluid motion, like saying /r/ then gradually opening to /ɛə/. Keep lips unrounded for most speakers; in some dialects a slight spread helps. Use a light, continuous vowel transition, not a stop between sounds. IPA references: /ˈrɛər/ (US), /ˈreə/ (UK/AU).
In US English, rhoticity makes /r/ pronounced clearly at the start; the following /ɛə/ forms a recognized rhotic diphthong; in many UK dialects, the /r/ is non-rhotic after vowels, so you may hear /ˈreɐ/ with a longer, pure vowel without an audible /r/ postvocalically; Australian English is rhotic but often features a more centralized starting vowel and a shorter glide, sometimes closer to /ˈreə/ with a less intense rhotic quality. IPA: US /ˈrɛər/, UK /ˈreə/, AU /ˈreə/.
The difficulty lies in producing a clean, single-syllable rhotic diphthong that flows from /r/ into /ɛə/ without creating a perceptible break. The second challenge is avoiding a mispronounced vowel like /æ/ or /ɜː/. The subtle difference between /ɛə/ and /eə/ is crucial for native-like accuracy. Focus on a smooth, continuous glide from /r/ into /ɛə/, with relaxed jaw and minimal lip rounding. IPA cues: /ˈrɛər/ (US) vs /ˈreə/ (UK/AU).
In emphatic or rapid speech, you may shorten the vowel somewhat and slightly increase the vowel height, creating a tighter /rɛə/ or /reə/ with less timing between the r and the vowel. The main aim is to preserve the perceived quality of rarity—unambiguity of the onset /r/ and the glide to the mid-to-high front vowel—without smoothing into a dull /ɹə/ or elongating into /ɹeː/. IPA references: US /ˈrɛər/, UK/AU /ˈreə/.
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