Rare \Rare\, a. [Compar. Rarer; superl. Rarest.]

[Cf. AS. hr[=e]r, or E. rare early.]

Nearly raw; partially cooked; not thoroughly cooked; underdone; as, rare beef or mutton.

New-laid eggs, which Baucis' busy care Turned by a gentle fire, and roasted rare. --Dryden.

Note: This word is in common use in the United States, but in England its synonym underdone is preferred.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Rare \Rare\, a. [Compar. Rarer; superl. Rarest.]

[F., fr. L. rarus thin, rare.]

1. Not frequent; seldom met with or occurring; unusual; as, a rare event.

2. Of an uncommon nature; unusually excellent; valuable to a degree seldom found.

Rare work, all filled with terror and delight. --Cowley.

Above the rest I judge one beauty rare. --Dryden.

3. Thinly scattered; dispersed.

Those rare and solitary, three in flocks. --Milton.

4. Characterized by wide separation of parts; of loose texture; not thick or dense; thin; as, a rare atmosphere at high elevations.

Water is nineteen times lighter, and by consequence nineteen times rarer, than gold. --Sir I. Newton.

Syn: Scarce; infrequent; unusual; uncommon; singular; extraordinary; incomparable.

Usage: Rare, Scarce. We call a thing rare when but few examples, specimens, or instances of it are ever to be met with; as, a rare plant. We speak of a thing as scarce, which, though usually abundant, is for the time being to be had only in diminished quantities; as, a bad harvest makes corn scarce.

A perfect union of wit and judgment is one of the rarest things in the world. --Burke.

When any particular piece of money grew very scarce, it was often recoined by a succeeding emperor. --Addison.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Rare \Rare\ (r[^a]r), a. [Cf. Rather, Rath.]

Early. [Obs.]

Rude mechanicals that rare and late Work in the market place. --Chapman.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)