(râr) adjective
1. Of infrequent occurrence.
2. Highly esteemed because of infrequency or uncommonness; valuable; choice.
3. Rarefied: now chiefly of the atmosphere.
4. Obs. Dispersed. [<F <L rarus rare] Synonyms: curious, extraordinary, incomparable, infrequent, odd, peculiar, precious, remarkable, scarce, singular, strange, uncommon, unique, unusual. Extraordinary, signifying greatly beyond the ordinary, is a neutral word, capable of a high and good sense or of an invidious, opprobrious, or contemptuous signification. Unique is alone of its kind; rare is infrequent of its kind; great poems are rare. To say of a thing that it is rare is simply to affirm that it is now seldom found, whether previously common or not; as, a rare old book; a rare word; to call a thing scarce implies that it was at some time more plentiful, as when we say money is scarce. A particular coin may be rare; scarce applies to demand and use, and almost always to concrete things; to speak of virtue, genius, or heroism as scarce would be somewhat ludicrous. See CHOICE, EXTRAORDINARY, OBSOLETE, ODD. Antonyms: see synonyms for COMMON.

(râr) adjective
Not thoroughly cooked: applied to roasted or broiled meat retaining its redness and juices: in England commonly termed underdone. [OE hrēre lightly boiled]