recherché

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See also: recherche and Recherche

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French recherché; more at French rechercher. Doublet of ricercata.

Pronunciation

Adjective

recherché (comparative more recherché, superlative most recherché)

  1. Sought out and chosen with care; choice; exquisite.
    • 1892, John Foreman, The Philippine Islands, page 375:
      Mangostanes, the recherché fruit of the Straits Settlements, are found in the Islands of Mindanao and Sulu.
    • 2001, Salman Rushdie, Fury: A Novel, London: Jonathan Cape, →ISBN, page 3:
      Stores, dealerships, galleries struggled to satisfy the skyrocketing demand for ever more recherché produce: limited-edition olive oils, three-hundred-dollar corkscrews, customized Humvees, the latest anti-virus software, escort services featuring contortionists and twins, video installations, outsider art, featherlight shawls made from the chin-fluff of extinct mountain goats.
  2. Exotic; of rare quality, elegance, attractiveness, etc.
  3. (by extension) Precious, pretentious, affected.

Related terms

See also

French

Pronunciation

Participle

recherché (feminine recherchée, masculine plural recherchés, feminine plural recherchées)

  1. past participle of rechercher

Adjective

recherché (feminine recherchée, masculine plural recherchés, feminine plural recherchées)

  1. sought-after
    Synonyms: couru, demandé, fréquenté, suivi
    1. prized, valued
      Synonyms: apprécié, cher, chéri, estimé, précieux
    2. desired, coveted
      Synonym: convoité
  2. marked by careful or laborious effort
    1. meticulous (evidencing careful or laborious effort)
      Synonyms: diligent, méticuleux, rigoureux, soigné, soigneux
    2. obtained or achieved by careful or laborious effort; immaculate, sharp, well-groomed
      Synonyms: soigné, travaillé
  3. evidencing careful reflection or studious research; refined, sophisticated, exquisite
    Synonyms: élégant, étudié, exquis, précieux, raffiné, savant, sophistiqué
    une langue très recherchée ― a very refined language
  4. (derogatory) unnatural, affected, contrived, overwrought, labored, tortured (as an obvious result of excessive effort or attempts at refinement)
    Synonyms: affecté, affété, alambiqué, apprêté, contourné, maniéré, mignard, ostentatoire, pompeux, précieux, prétentieux, théâtral, tourmenté, travaillé, voulu

References

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