top drawer

American  

noun

1. the highest level in rank, excellence, or importance.

   a musician strictly out of the top drawer.

---

top drawer British  

noun

1. people of the highest standing, esp socially (esp in the phrase out of the top drawer )

---

top drawer Idioms  

1. Of the highest quality, importance, or rank, as in The musicians in this pick-up orchestra were top drawer. It probably alludes to the uppermost drawer in a bureau or chest, where the most valuable objects (such as jewelry) are usually kept. [c. 1900]

---

Other Word Forms

• top-drawer
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of top drawer

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

top drawer

Keep your rental paperwork in your top drawer.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026

Leclerc's victory was out of the top drawer and underlined his quality as one of the leading lights of the new generation.

From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2022

The night before, Ms. Reardon said, “I sat in bed and wrote a list of attributes my ‘dream guy’ would have and tucked it away in my top drawer.

From New York Times ● Nov. 19, 2021

The writing is top drawer, and the text is experimental to profitable effect, which I’m afraid is rather rare.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 5, 2020

She yanked open the left top drawer, pulling out a broken comb, which she viciously jerked through the wilderness on her head, only to be defeated by a patch of bubble gum.

From "The Great Gilly Hopkins" by Katherine Paterson