dear

adjective
UK: /dɪər/
US: /dɪr/

  1. Loved or liked very much.

    1. She is a dear friend; I value our connection so much. [ ] [ ]
    2. My dear mother always supported my dreams, no matter how big they were. [ ] [ ]

  2. Used at the beginning of a letter to address someone.

    1. Dear John, I hope this letter finds you well during your travels. [ ] [ ]
    2. Dear colleagues, please find attached the agenda for our next project review meeting. [ ] [ ]

  3. Expensive.

    1. The hotel was quite dear, but the service was very good. [ ] [ ]
    2. Compared to other brands, this organic coffee is considerably dearer to purchase. [ ] [ ]

Synonyms

beloved costly expensive darling precious
dear noun

  1. A loved or valued person.

    1. She is such a dear, always ready to help others in need. [ ] [ ]
    2. He's an absolute dear for remembering my birthday every single year. [ ] [ ]
dear interjection

  1. Used to express surprise, sadness, or sympathy.

    1. Oh dear, I seem to have misplaced my car keys somewhere again. [ ] [ ]
    2. Dear me, that's a terrible accident; I hope nobody was seriously hurt. [ ] [ ]
dear adverb

  1. At a high price.

    1. They had to buy the parts dear because of the urgent deadline. [ ] [ ]
    2. The company learned that innovation comes at times too dear to be practical. [ ] [ ]

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "dear" in English means: Loved or liked very much., Used at the beginning of a letter to address someone., Expensive..

The phonetic transcription of "dear" is /dɪər/ in British English and /dɪr/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "dear": beloved, costly, expensive, darling, precious.

Example usage of "dear": "She is a dear friend; I value our connection so much.". More examples on the page.