grail

American  

[greyl] / greɪl /

noun

1. 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.

2. Often the Grail Holy Grail.

   Weeks pass, and none of the knights return, so King Arthur himself must quest for the Grail.

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Grail British  

/ ɡreɪl /

noun

1. See Holy Grail

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Etymology

Origin of 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” ( crater ( def. ) ) or crātis “wickerwork” ( grate ¹ ( def. ) )

Example Sentences

A self-described "techie guy," Davies said the platform's current obsession is on giving creators nuanced control over creating or editing footage -- something he described as the company's "holy grail."

From Barron's

The agreement was “reasonable” on its face, Mr. Ansari says, “but people treated it as if it were some sort of holy grail.”

From The Wall Street Journal

The financial world is full of people and firms claiming that they have the secret, the magic key, the holy grail, that will enable you to beat the market.

From The Wall Street Journal

"Materials that are triplet superconductors are a kind of 'holy grail' in quantum technology, and more specifically quantum computing," explained Linder.

From Science Daily

One of the holy grails of trucking is to find a way to reduce the one-third of trips that big rigs are believed to spend hauling empty trailers.

From The Wall Street Journal