The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dear \Dear\ (d[=e]r), a. [Compar. Dearer (d[=e]r"[~e]r);
   superl. Dearest (d[=e]r"[e^]st).] [OE. dere, deore, AS.
   de['o]re; akin to OS. diuri, D. duur, OHG. tiuri, G. theuer,
   teuer, Icel. d[=y]rr, Dan. & Sw. dyr. Cf. Darling,
   Dearth.]
   1. Bearing a high price; high-priced; costly; expensive.
      [1913 Webster]

            The cheapest of us is ten groats too dear. --Shak.
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   2. Marked by scarcity or dearth, and exorbitance of price;
      as, a dear year.
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   3. Highly valued; greatly beloved; cherished; precious. "Hear
      me, dear lady." --Shak.
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            Neither count I my life dear unto myself. --Acts xx.
                                                  24.
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            And the last joy was dearer than the rest. --Pope.
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            Dear as remember'd kisses after death. --Tennyson.
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   4. Hence, close to the heart; heartfelt; present in mind;
      engaging the attention.
      (a) Of agreeable things and interests.
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                [I'll] leave you to attend him: some dear cause
                Will in concealment wrap me up awhile. --Shak.
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                His dearest wish was to escape from the bustle
                and glitter of Whitehall.         --Macaulay.
      (b) Of disagreeable things and antipathies.
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                In our dear peril.                --Shak.
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                Would I had met my dearest foe in heaven
                Or ever I had seen that day.      --Shak.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dear \Dear\, n.
   A dear one; lover; sweetheart.
   [1913 Webster]

         That kiss I carried from thee, dear.     --Shak.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dear \Dear\, adv.
   Dearly; at a high price.
   [1913 Webster]

         If thou attempt it, it will cost thee dear. --Shak.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dear \Dear\, v. t.
   To endear. [Obs.] --Shelton.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

dear
    adv 1: with affection; "she loved him dearly"; "he treats her
           affectionately" [syn: dearly, affectionately, dear]
    2: at a great cost; "he paid dearly for the food"; "this cost
       him dear" [syn: dearly, dear]
    adj 1: dearly loved [syn: beloved, darling, dear]
    2: with or in a close or intimate relationship; "a good friend";
       "my sisters and brothers are near and dear" [syn: dear,
       good, near]
    3: earnest; "one's dearest wish"; "devout wishes for their
       success"; "heartfelt condolences" [syn: dear, devout,
       earnest, heartfelt]
    4: having a high price; "costly jewelry"; "high-priced
       merchandise"; "much too dear for my pocketbook"; "a pricey
       restaurant" [syn: costly, dear(p), high-priced,
       pricey, pricy]
    n 1: a beloved person; used as terms of endearment [syn:
         beloved, dear, dearest, honey, love]
    2: a sweet innocent mild-mannered person (especially a child)
       [syn: lamb, dear]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

96 Moby Thesaurus words for "dear":
   admired, adored, affectionate, angel, at a premium, at great cost,
   at great expense, at heavy cost, babe, baby, baby-doll, beloved,
   beloved object, beyond price, buttercup, cherished, cherub, chick,
   chickabiddy, costly, crush, darling, dear one, dear-bought, dearly,
   dearly beloved, deary, devoted, doll, doting, duck, duckling,
   esteemed, expensive, fancy, favored, favorite, fond, golden,
   good as gold, heartthrob, held dear, high, high-priced, hon, honey,
   honey bunch, honey child, honored, inestimable, invaluable, lamb,
   lambkin, light of love, love, loved, loved one, lover, lovesome,
   luxurious, not affordable, of great cost, of great price, pet,
   petkins, popular, precious, precious heart, premium, priceless,
   pricey, prized, revered, rich, snookums, steep, stiff, sugar,
   sumptuous, sweet, sweetheart, sweetie, sweetkins, sweets, top,
   treasure, treasured, truelove, unpayable, valuable, valued,
   venerated, well-beloved, well-liked, white-haired, worthy