Jump to:

• A one
  A one

  adjective

  noting a vessel regarded by a shipping-classification society as being equipped to the highest standard and with equipment maintained in first-class condition.
• A-one
  A-one

  Also, A-1; A-number-one. First-class, of the best quality, as in This is an A-one steak. The term comes from Lloyd's, the British insurance company, which in its 1775 shipping register designated the condition of a ship's hull by a letter grade (A, B, etc.) and of its cables, anchor, and other equipment by a number grade (1, 2, etc.). By the early 1800s A-1, the best possible grade, was being transferred to anything of superior quality.

A one

American  

[ey wuhn] / ˈeɪ ˈwʌn /

Also A-one,

adjective

1. noting a vessel regarded by a shipping-classification society as being equipped to the highest standard and with equipment maintained in first-class condition.

2. Informal. Also A number one. first-class; excellent; superior.

   The meals there are A one.

---

A-one Idioms  

1. Also, A-1; A-number-one. First-class, of the best quality, as in This is an A-one steak. The term comes from Lloyd's, the British insurance company, which in its 1775 shipping register designated the condition of a ship's hull by a letter grade (A, B, etc.) and of its cables, anchor, and other equipment by a number grade (1, 2, etc.). By the early 1800s A-1, the best possible grade, was being transferred to anything of superior quality.

---

Etymology

Origin of A one

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

I hope they have a--one of those books over there--and then--maybe--I hope they keep it open at page two hundred and eighty-four.

From Pee-Wee Harris on the Trail by Fitzhugh, Percy Keese