'rarely-held' originates from the combination of 'rarely,' meaning 'not often,' and 'held,' the past participle of 'hold,' meaning 'to possess or maintain.'

'Rarely-held' combines the adverb 'rarely' with the past participle 'held' to form an adjective describing infrequent possession.

Initially, 'rarely' meant 'seldom' and 'held' meant 'possessed,' and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.