treasure

See also: Treasure

English

Alternative forms

treasuer (chiefly archaic)

Etymology

From Middle English tresour, from Old French tresor (“treasury”), from Latin thēsaurus (“treasure”), from Ancient Greek θησαυρός (thēsaurós, “treasure house”). Displaced native Old English goldhord. Doublet of thesaurus.

Pronunciation

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Hyphenation: treas‧ure
Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -ɛʒə(ɹ)

Noun

treasure (countable and uncountable, plural treasures)

(uncountable) A collection of valuable things; accumulated wealth; a stock of money, jewels, etc.
- 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, chapter 20, in Treasure Island:
  "Now," resumed Silver, "here it is. You give us the chart to get the treasure by, and drop shooting poor seamen and stoving of their heads in while asleep. You do that, and we'll offer you a choice. Either you come aboard along of us, once the treasure shipped, and then I'll give you my affy-davy, upon my word of honour, to clap you somewhere safe ashore.
(countable) Anything greatly valued.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 19:5:
  
  Ye shall be peculiar treasure unto me.
- 1640 July 30, [John Towers], “Upon the Sending of the First Volume of These Sermons to the Right Reverend Father in God, the Bishop of Peterborough, then My Diocesan, I Received This Letter”, in John Donne, XXVI. Sermons (Never before Publish’d) Preached by that Learned and Reverend Divine John Donne, […], London: […] Thomas Newcomb, […], published 1661, →OCLC:
  You have ſent me a Treaſure, and I would not ſhare time to tell you ſo, till I had ſomewhat ſatisfied the thirſt I had to drink down many of thoſe Excellent Sermons, which I have ſo long deſired: […]
- 1681, Nahum Tate, The History of King Lear
  I found the whole to answer your Account of it, a Heap of Jewels, unstrung and unpolisht; yet so dazling in their Disorder, that I soon perceiv'd I had seiz'd a Treasure.
- 1946, Ernest Tubb, Filipino Baby
  She's my Filipino baby she's my treasure and my pet
  
  Her teeth are bright and pearly and her hair is black as jet
(countable) A term of endearment.
- 1922, Francis Rufus Bellamy, A Flash of Gold
  "Hello, Treasure," he said without turning round. For a second she hesitated, standing in the soft light of the lamp, the deep blue of the rug making a background for her, the black fur collar of her coat framing the vivid beauty of her face.

Related terms

treasury

Derived terms

Terms derived from treasure (noun)

Translations

collection of valuable things

Afrikaans: skat
Albanian: thesar (sq) m
Arabic: كَنْز (kanz)
Egyptian Arabic: كنز m (kinz)

Hijazi Arabic: كَنْز m (kanz)
Aragonese: tresoro
Armenian: գանձ (hy) (ganj)
Azerbaijani: xəzinə (az)
Bashkir: хазина (xazina)
Basque: altxor
Belarusian: скарб m (skarb)
Bengali: সম্পদ (śompod)
Bulgarian: съкро́вище (bg) n (sǎkróvište), драгоце́нност (bg) f (dragocénnost)
Burmese: ရတနာ (my) (ra.ta.na)
Catalan: tresor (ca) m
Cebuano: bahandi
Chinese:
Mandarin: 珍寶／珍宝 (zh) (zhēnbǎo), 珍宝 (zh) (zhēnbǎo), 寶藏／宝藏 (zh), 宝藏 (zh) (bǎozàng), 金銀財寶／金银财宝 (jīnyíncáibǎo), 金银财宝 (jīnyíncáibǎo), 財富／财富 (zh) (cáifù), 财富 (zh) (cáifù)
Czech: poklad (cs) m
Danish: skat (da) c
Dutch: schat (nl) f
Esperanto: trezoro (eo)
Estonian: aare (et)
Finnish: aarre (fi)
French: trésor (fr) m
Galician: tesouro m
Georgian: განძი (ganʒi), საგანძური (saganʒuri)
German: Schatz (de) m
Gothic: 𐌷𐌿𐌶𐌳 n (huzd)
Greek: θησαυρός (el) m (thisavrós)
Ancient: θησαυρός m (thēsaurós)
Hebrew: אוֹצָר (he) m (otsár)
Higaonon: bahandi
Hindi: ख़िज़ाना f (xizānā)
Hungarian: kincs (hu)
Icelandic: fjársjóður (is) m
Ido: trezoro (io)
Indonesian: harta (id)
Irish: taisce f
Italian: tesoro (it) m
Japanese: 宝 (ja) (たから, takara), 宝物 (ja) (たからもの, takaramono)
Kazakh: қазына (kk) (qazyna)
Khmer: កំណប់ (km) (kɑmnɑp)
Korean: 보물(寶物) (ko) (bomul), 보배 (ko) (bobae)
Kyrgyz: кенч (kenc)
Lao: ສົມບັດ (som bat), ຊັບສົມບັດ (sap som bat)
(deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
Latin: thesaurus m
Latvian: dārgums m
Lezgi: хазина (χazina)
Lithuanian: lobis m
Macedonian: богатство n (bogatstvo), благо n (blago)
Malagasy: harena (mg)
Malay: khazanah (ms)
Maori: taonga, puiaki, puipuiaki
Middle English: tresour, garisoun
Mingrelian: განძი (ganʒi)
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: баялаг (mn) (bajalag)
Norwegian: skatt (no) m
Occitan: tresaur (oc) m
Old English: goldhord n
Ossetian: хӕзна (xæzna)
Pashto: خزانه (ps) f (xazāná), کونډال m (konḍā́l), ګنجينه f (ganǰína)
Persian: گنجینه (fa) (ganjine), گنج (fa) (ganj)
Plautdietsch: Schauz m
Polish: skarb (pl) m
Portuguese: tesouro (pt) m
Romanian: comoară (ro) f, tezaur (ro) n
Russian: сокро́вище (ru) n (sokróvišče), драгоце́нность (ru) f (dragocénnostʹ), клад (ru) m (klad) (hidden)
Samoan: ʻoloa
Sanskrit: कोश (sa) m (kośa)
Scottish Gaelic: ionmhas m
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: бла̑го n, драго̀цено̄ст f, драго̀цјено̄ст f

Roman: blȃgo (sh) n, dragòcenōst (sh) f, dragòcjenōst (sh) f
Slovak: poklad m
Slovene: zaklad (sl) m
Spanish: tesoro (es) m
Swedish: skatt (sv) c, rikedom (sv)
Tagalog: kayamunan
Tajik: ганҷ (ganj), ҷавохирот (javoxirot)
Tatar: хәзинә (tt) (xäzinä)
Thai: สมบัติ (th) (sǒm-bàt)
Turkish: hazine (tr), define (tr)
Turkmen: hazyna
Ukrainian: скарб m (skarb)
Urdu: خزانہ f (xizāna)
Uyghur: خەزىنە (xezine)
Uzbek: xazina (uz)
Vietnamese: kho báu, châu báu (vi)
Volapük: div (vo)
Walloon: trezôr (wa) m
Welsh: trysor (cy) m, amguedd m, amgueddau m pl
Yiddish: אוצר m (oytser)
Zazaki: xazina f, define f

any single thing one values greatly

Bulgarian: драгоце́нност (bg) f (dragocénnost)
Catalan: tresor (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 瑰寶／瑰宝 (zh) (guībǎo), 瑰宝 (zh) (guībǎo), 財富／财富 (zh) (cáifù), 财富 (zh) (cáifù)
Finnish: aarre (fi)
French: trésor (fr) m
Georgian: ძვირფასეულობა (ʒvirpaseuloba), განძი (ganʒi)
German: Schatz (de) m
Greek:
Ancient: θησαυρός m (thēsaurós)
Hebrew: אוֹצָר (he) m (otsár)
Hungarian: kincs (hu)
Ido: trezoro (io)
Irish: stór m
Italian: tesoro (it) m
(deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
Macedonian: драгоценост f (dragocenost)
Maori: ohooho, māpihi, mounga, puiaki, puipuiaki
Middle English: tresour
Norwegian: skatt (no) m
Old English: māþm m
Portuguese: tesouro (pt) m
Romanian: comoară (ro) f
Russian: драгоце́нность (ru) f (dragocénnostʹ)
Slovene: zaklad (sl) m
Spanish: tesoro (es) m
Turkish: hazine (tr), define (tr)
Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
Walloon: trezôr (wa) m
Welsh: trysori (cy) m

term of endearment

Catalan: tresor (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: please add this translation if you can
Czech: poklad (cs) m
Dutch: schat (nl) m
Finnish: kulta (fi)
French: trésor (fr) m
German: Schatz (de) m
(deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
Hungarian: drágám (hu), édesem
Irish: stór m
Italian: tesoro (it) m
Norwegian: skatt (no) m
Russian: please add this translation if you can
Spanish: tesoro (es) m
Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
Walloon: trezôr (wa) m, cint-meye m

Verb

treasure (third-person singular simple present treasures, present participle treasuring, simple past and past participle treasured)

(transitive, of a person or thing) To consider to be precious; to value highly.
Oh, this ring is beautiful! I’ll treasure it forever.
- 1838, Eliza Cook, "The Old Armchair", in Melania and other Poems
  I LOVE it, I love it ; and who shall dare
  
  To chide me for loving that old Arm-chair ?
  
  I've treasured it long as a sainted prize ;
  
  I've bedewed it with tears, and embalmed it with sighs.
(transitive) To store or stow in a safe place.
- 1825, Walter Scott, The Talisman
  The rose-buds, withered as they were, were still treasured under his cuirass, and nearest to his heart.
(transitive, obsolete) To enrich.

Synonyms

(to consider to be precious): cherish

Antonyms

(to consider to be precious): despise

Translations

consider to be precious

Bulgarian: ценя (bg) (cenja)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 珍重 (zh) (zhēnzhòng), 珍視／珍视 (zh) (zhēnshì)
Finnish: arvostaa (fi), vaalia (fi), säilyttää aarteena
French: ^{(please verify)} garder précieusement , ^{(please verify)} priser (fr)
German: schätzen (de)
Hungarian: nagyra becsül (hu), sokra tart, becsben tart, nagyra tart, féltve őriz
Italian: apprezzare (it)
(deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
Japanese: 重宝する (ja) (chōhō suru), 珍重する (ja) (chinchō suru)
Romanian: prețui (ro)
Russian: ценить (ru) (cenitʹ)
Slovak: vážiť si
Spanish: atesorar (es)
Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
Welsh: trysori (cy)

Derived terms

Terms derived from the noun or verb treasure

Template:rel-mid

Anagrams

austerer, treasuer