- semiprecious
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/sem'ee presh"euhs, sem'uy-/, adj.(of a stone) having commercial value as a gem but not classified as precious, as the amethyst or garnet.[1885-90; SEMI- + PRECIOUS]
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Universalium. 2010.
semiprecious
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Semiprecious — Sem i*pre cious (s[e^]m [i^]*pr[e^]sh [u^]s), a. Somewhat precious; as, semiprecious stones or metals. Used mostly of gemstones used in jewelry, such as amethyst, garnet, or iolite, which are sufficiently rare to have commercial value, but are… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
semiprecious — also semi precious, 1905, from SEMI (Cf. semi ) + PRECIOUS (Cf. precious) … Etymology dictionary
semiprecious — [sem΄ipresh′əs] adj. designating gems of lower value than those classified as precious: said of the garnet, turquoise, etc … English World dictionary
semiprecious — adjective Sort of or somewhat precious or valuable. Usually used as part of the terms semiprecious stone or semiprecious gem. See Also: semiprecious stone, semiprecious gem … Wiktionary
semiprecious — sem|i|pre|cious [ ,semi preʃəs, ,semaı preʃəs ] adjective a semiprecious stone is one that is used in jewelry and is valuable, but not as valuable as a precious stone such as a DIAMOND or EMERALD … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
semiprecious — sem•i•pre•cious [[t]ˌsɛm iˈprɛʃ əs, ˌsɛm aɪ [/t]] adj. jew having commercial value as a gem but not classified as precious: semiprecious minerals[/ex] … From formal English to slang
semiprecious — adjective Date: 1858 of a gemstone of less commercial value than a precious stone … New Collegiate Dictionary
semiprecious — adj. having a moderate commercial value, somewhat valuable (about a gemstone) … English contemporary dictionary
semiprecious — semi·precious … English syllables
semiprecious — /sɛmiˈprɛʃəs / (say semee preshuhs) adjective (of a gem) having value, but not classified as precious, as the amethyst, garnet, etc …
