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rare

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(as) rare as hens' teeth

Incredibly scarce or rare; extremely difficult or impossible to find. Support for the president is as rare as hens' teeth in this part of the country.

See also: rare, teeth

(as) rare as rocking horse crap

vulgar slang Extremely rare or unlikely; all but, or most likely, impossible or non-existent. Primarily heard in Ireland. An honest person in politics? Yeah, that's as rare as rocking horse crap. I'm sorry to say, but the part this engine needs is rare as rocking horse crap. They haven't manufactured these in nearly 50 years!

See also: crap, horse, rare, rocking

(as) rare as rocking horse poo

vulgar slang Extremely rare or unlikely; all but, or most likely, impossible or non-existent. Primarily heard in Ireland. An honest person in politics? Yeah, that's as rare as rocking horse poo. I'm sorry to say, but the part this engine needs is rare as rocking horse poo. They haven't manufactured these in nearly 50 years!

See also: horse, poo, rare, rocking

(as) rare as rocking horse shit

vulgar slang Extremely rare or unlikely; all but, or most likely, impossible or non-existent. Primarily heard in Ireland. An honest person in politics? Yeah, that's as rare as rocking horse shit. I'm sorry to say, but the part this engine needs is rare as rocking horse shit. They haven't manufactured these in nearly 50 years!

See also: horse, rare, rocking, shit

have a rare old time

a fine and enjoyable time at a party or something similar. We had a rare old time at Tom's the other night. I haven't had a rare old time like that in years.

See also: have, old, rare, time

in rare form

 

1. Fig. well prepared for a good performance; at one's best. The goalie is in rare form today; that's his third great save already. We are not exactly in rare form on Monday mornings.

2. Inf. intoxicated. Gert is in rare form, but she'll have time to sleep it off. When Harry was finally in rare form, he slid beneath the table.

See also: form, rare

rare bird, a

An exceptional individual, a unique person, as in That wife of yours is a rare bird; you're lucky to have her. This idiom, generally used as a compliment, is a translation of the Latin rara avis, which itself was used from about 1600 on and began to be translated only in the late 1800s.

See also: rare

in rare form

1. mod. well-tuned for a good performance; at one’s best. We are not exactly in rare form on Monday mornings.

2. mod. alcohol intoxicated. Gert is in rare form, but she’ll have time to sleep it off.

See also: form, rare

rare bird

n. an unusual person; a person with rare talents or abilities. An interesting kind of rare bird is the man who can take long vacations and still make money.

See also: bird, rare

rare old time

n. a fine and enjoyable time at a party or something similar. (Folksy.) That was a rare old time at Tom’s the other night.

See also: old, rare, time