something that is precious is valuable and important and should not be wasted or used without care

宝贵的:

We cannot afford to waste precious time.

我们浪费不起宝贵的时间。

planes delivering precious supplies of medicine and food

运送药品、食品等宝贵物资的飞机

our planet's precious resources

我们地球上的宝贵资源

rare and worth a lot of money

贵重的，珍贵的:

a statue covered with precious jewels

嵌满贵重宝石的雕塑

precious memories or possessions are important to you because they remind you of people you like or events in your life

〔记忆或拥有物〕珍贵的，宝贵的:

The doll is cracked and worn, but it's precious to me because it was my mother's.

这个娃娃又破又旧，可对我来说很宝贵，因为它是我妈妈的。

[only before noun] [spoken] used to show that you are annoyed that someone seems to care too much about something

宝贝似的〔用于对某人似乎太过注重某事物表示讨厌〕:

I never touched your precious car!

我根本没碰过你的宝贝汽车！

[spoken] used to speak to someone you love, especially a baby or small child

宝贝〔对所爱之人，尤指对婴儿或小孩子的称呼〕:

Come sit by me, precious.

坐到我旁边来，宝贝儿。

[AmE spoken] used in order to describe someone or something that is small and pretty

可爱的;

The kids gave me that ornament. Isn't it precious?

那件装饰品是孩子们送我的，是不是很可爱？

[formal] too concerned about style or detail in your writing or speech, so that it does not seem natural

〔言词〕矫揉造作的:

His early work is rather precious and juvenile.

他的早期作品做作幼稚。

precious little / few, very little or very few

非常少:

I had precious little time for reading.

我很少有时间看书。