Sometimes Grail any greatly desired and sought-after objective; ultimate ideal or reward.
The film's protagonist is defined by the struggle for his grail, a championship title he failed to win earlier in life.
Often the Grail Holy Grail.
Weeks pass, and none of the knights return, so King Arthur himself must quest for the Grail.
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English graiel, graile, from Anglo-French grahel, grayel, Old French gräel, grel, from Medieval Latin gradālis “platter,” of uncertain origin; perhaps distantly connected to Latin crātēr “mixing bowl” ( see crater ( def. )) or crātis “wickerwork” ( see grate 1 ( def. ))
A grail is some valuable thing you search for or pursue. A golfer's holy grail might be a hole in one. While the object of any serious pursuit is commonly described as a "holy grail," many who use the term might not know its origin. The original Holy Grail is a valuable chalice, cup, or plate — often made of gold — that's sought in medieval and Arthurian legends. The influence of Christianity makes the grail "holy," originally because it was said to have been used at the Last Supper. Grail has a Medieval Latin root, gradalis, "flat dish."
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Everyone treats buy-and-hold as the holy grail because they are anchored to the extraordinary run from 1982 to today.
From MarketWatch • May 26, 2026
Its octagonal shape is a riff on AP’s Royal Oak, a holy grail watch among collectors.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
As a teen surfer girl in El Porto, they were my holy grail.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026
Neymar brought profile and panache to Paris but could not deliver the holy grail of European success, Denilson's trickery failed to help Real Betis beat the drop, a car crash curtailed Gigi Lentini's buccaneering brilliance.
From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026
“It’s an overrated game that people, especially New Yorkers, think is the friggin’ holy grail of games.
From "The Boy in the Black Suit" 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.
