magnum opus

American  

noun

1. a great work, especially the chief work of a writer or artist.

   Proust's magnum opus is Remembrance of Things Past.

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magnum opus British  

noun

1. a great work of art or literature, esp the greatest single work of an artist

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magnum opus Cultural  

1. The most important work in a person's career, especially in literature, art, or scholarship: “Moby Dick was Melville's magnum opus.” From Latin, meaning “great work.”

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Etymology

Origin of magnum opus

Borrowed into English from Latin around 1785–95

Example Sentences

Much has been said already about Bad Bunny’s magnum opus; the album is a generation-spanning, full-throated celebration of boricua resilience, and simultaneously a pointed warning about the ongoing neocolonization of La Isla del Encanto.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 16, 2025

The following year Skepta released his own magnum opus, Konnichiwa.

From BBC • Oct. 31, 2025

Consumers’ Research, the Supreme Court reversed an opinion that Oldham presented as something of a magnum opus.

From Slate • Jul. 10, 2025

In 1966, Wilson led The Beach Boys in the production of "Pet Sounds," the magnum opus that elevated the group’s stature for all time.

From Salon • Jun. 12, 2025

It is the opening of John Keegan’s 1993 magnum opus, A History of Warfare: War is not the continuation of policy by other means.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker