adjective
- extremely high or elevated; lofty; exalted: the rarefied atmosphere of a scholarly symposium.
- of, belonging to, or appealing to an exclusive group; select; esoteric: rarefied tastes.
verb (used with object), rar·e·fied, rar·e·fy·ing.
- to make rare or rarer; make less dense: to rarefy a gas.
- to make more refined, spiritual, or exalted.
verb (used without object), rar·e·fied, rar·e·fy·ing.
- to become rare or less dense; become thinned: Moisture rarefies when heated.
adjective
- exalted in nature or character; loftya rarefied spiritual existence
- current within only a small group; esoteric or exclusive
- (of a gas, esp the atmosphere at high altitudes) having a low density; thin
verb -fies, -fying or -fied
- to make or become rarer or less dense; thin out
late 14c., from Old French rarefier (14c.) and directly from Medieval Latin rarificare, from Latin rarefacere “make rare,” from rarus “rare, thin” (see rare (adj.1)) + facere “to make” (see factitious). Related: Rarefied.