dear: [OE] Dear is one of the English language’s more semantically stable words. By the 11th century it had already developed its two major present-day senses, ‘much-loved’ and ‘expensive’, which are shared by its Germanic relative, German teuer (Dutch has differentiated dier ‘much loved’ from duur ‘expensive’). All these words go back to a prehistoric West and North Germanic *deurjaz, whose ultimate origin is not known.
In the 13th century an abstract noun, dearth, was derived from the adjective. It seems likely that this originally meant ‘expensiveness’ (although instances of this sense, which has since disappeared, are not recorded before the late 15th century). This developed to ‘period when food is expensive, because scarce’, and eventually to ‘scarcity’ generally. => dearth
dear (adj.)
Old English deore "precious, valuable, costly, loved, beloved," from Proto-Germanic *deurjaz (cognates: Old Saxon diuri, Old Norse dyrr, Old Frisian diore, Middle Dutch dure, Dutch duur, Old High German tiuri, German teuer), ultimate origin unknown. Used interjectorily since 1690s. As a polite introductory word to letters, it is attested from mid-15c. As a noun, from late 14c., perhaps short for dear one, etc.
双语例句
1. Outside, Bruce glanced at his watch: "Dear me, nearly oneo'clock."
出了门，布鲁斯瞥了一眼自己的手表，“天哪，快一点了。”
来自柯林斯例句
2. "Could I have a word?" — "Oh dear, if you must."
“我能说一句吗？”——“亲爱的，如果你非说不可的话，好吧。”
来自柯林斯例句
3. I made for the life raft and hung on for dear life.
我游到救生筏前，死命地抓住它。
来自柯林斯例句
4. My dear Lady Mary, how very good to see you.
亲爱的玛丽夫人，见到您真是太高兴了。
来自柯林斯例句
5. "Ooh dear me, that's a bit of a racist comment isn't it."