precious few

precious few
used for emphasizing how little there is of something

I’ve had precious little sleep over the last two days.

There are precious few decent restaurants left around here.

Thesaurus: words used to describe small amounts and quantitiessynonym
Main entry: precious

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • precious few — ► precious little (or few) informal extremely little (or few). Main Entry: ↑precious …   English terms dictionary

  • precious few — very small number, very little …   English contemporary dictionary

  • few — [ fju ] (comparative fewer; superlative fewest) function word, quantifier *** Few can be used in the following ways: as a determiner (followed by a plural noun): Few people live there now. There were a few animals in the barn. as a pronoun: Many… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • precious little — precious little/few/ phrase used for emphasizing how little there is of something I’ve had precious little sleep over the last two days. There are precious few decent restaurants left around here. Thesaurus: words used to describe small amounts… …   Useful english dictionary

  • few — W1S1 [fju:] determiner, pron, adj comparative fewer superlative fewest [: Old English; Origin: feawa] 1.) [no comparative] a small number of things or people a few ▪ I have to buy a few things at the supermarket. ▪ Pam called to say she s going… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • precious — [[t]pre̱ʃəs[/t]] 1) ADJ GRADED If you say that something such as a resource is precious, you mean that it is valuable and should not be wasted or used badly. After four months in foreign parts, every hour at home was precious... A family break… …   English dictionary

  • precious — pre|cious1 [ preʃəs ] adjective ** 1. ) worth a lot of money: VALUABLE: a precious jewel historic houses with rare and precious contents a ) loved or valued by someone: a precious memory Her daughter is the most precious thing in the world to her …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • precious — I UK [ˈpreʃəs] / US adjective ** 1) worth a lot of money a precious jewel historic houses with rare and precious contents a) loved or valued by someone a precious memory Her daughter is the most precious thing in the world to her. b) rare or very …   English dictionary

  • few — /fju:/ quanountifier, noun (plural) 1 a few/the few (no comparative) a small number (of): I ve got a few books on gardening. | I ll pop into the supermarket and get a few bits and pieces. | only a few hundred yards past the crossroads | It s one… …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • precious little/few — extremely little or few (used for emphasis) police still know precious little about the dead man | you will find precious few atheists on operating tables …   Useful english dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”