masterpiece

[mas-ter-pees, mah-ster-]

noun

1. a person's greatest piece of work, as in an art.

2. anything done with masterly skill.

   a masterpiece of improvisation.

3. a consummate example of skill or excellence of any kind.

   The chef 's cake was a masterpiece.

4. a piece made by a person aspiring to the rank of master in a guild or other craft organization as a proof of competence.

masterpiece

/ ˈmɑːstəˌpiːs, ˈmɑːstəˌwɜːk /

noun

1. an outstanding work, achievement, or performance

2. the most outstanding piece of work of a creative artist, craftsman, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of masterpiece¹

1570–80; master + piece, modeled on Dutch meesterstuk, German Meisterstück

Word History and Origins

Origin of masterpiece¹

C17: compare Dutch meesterstuk, German Meisterstück, a sample of work submitted to a guild by a craftsman in order to qualify for the rank of master

Example Sentences

Yet here were dozens of works each by Picasso, Georges Braque, Fernand Léger and Juan Gris, most of them created during a short period in the early 20th century, nearly all of them masterpieces.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In fact, “MASS,” after years of puzzled neglect, ultimately came to be heralded as a Bernstein masterpiece, a work that freed contemporary music of genre-fication.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Some of it was pedestrian: He released around 130 albums, all told, and not everything can be a masterpiece.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“A few days ago we went there, and I must say we were very moved, because it’s a masterpiece.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Now, you can add Cam Schlittler to that list, thanks to his masterpiece on the biggest possible stage.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• classic 
• gem 
• jewel 
• monument 
• treasure