crown jewels
Britishplural noun
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A prized possession or asset, as in The Iliad and Odyssey are the crown jewels of ancient literature , or The software products are the company's crown jewels . This usage transfers the value of royal jewels to some other object. [Late 1800s]
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Also, family jewels . The male genitals, especially the testicles. For example, She gave the would-be mugger a hard kick in the family jewels . A slang euphemism, the term dates from the 1970s, and the variant from the early 1900s.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Museum bosses have come under increasing scrutiny in recent months, after thieves stole priceless French crown jewels from the museum in broad daylight and hundreds of books were damaged in a leak.
From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026
The two Panama container terminals were the crown jewels of the deal.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026
Paramount is the only major studio to be physically located in Hollywood and its studio lot is one of the company’s crown jewels.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 27, 2026
Just a few weeks ago, a U.S. hedge-fund manager known for playing the long game in Latin America won a protracted battle for one of Venezuela’s crown jewels.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 5, 2026
Where the crown jewels get dropped down sewers and flushed down toilets.
From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
