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hall·mark | \ ˈhȯl-ˌmärk 
\
\Definition of hallmark
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : an official mark stamped on gold and silver articles in England to attest their purity
b : a mark or device placed or stamped on an article of trade to indicate origin, purity, or genuineness
a hallmark from the Ming dynasty
2 : a distinguishing characteristic, trait, or feature
the dramatic flourishes which are the hallmark of the trial lawyer— Marion K. Sanders
hallmark
verbhallmarked; hallmarking; hallmarks
Definition of hallmark (Entry 2 of 2)
: to stamp with a mark that indicates origin, purity, or genuineness : to stamp with a hallmark (see hallmark entry 1)
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Examples of hallmark in a Sentence
Noun
He had all the hallmarks of a great baseball player.
Humor is one of the hallmarks of her style.
The murder bore all the hallmarks of a serial killer's work.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Excellent three-point defense The hallmark of a good Chris Beard team is a swarming defense.
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Brice Paterik, Dallas News, "Poor shooting night sinks No. 22 Texas Tech on the road in 66-54 loss to No. 17 West Virginia," 11 Jan. 2020 Yet the change-the-world idealism, once a hallmark of the internet giants, is alive and well.
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Erin Griffith, New York Times, "With Big Tech in Their Path, Start-Ups Turn to Business Markets," 22 Nov. 2019 Vuong’s willingness to solve the equation of his own existence, no matter its components, is a hallmark of this poignant and lyrical work of self-discovery.
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Sarah K. Benning, Washington Post, "Best Books of 2019," 21 Nov. 2019 Whooping cough is a highly contagious — and preventable – respiratory illness, a hallmark of which is a severe cough that leaves a person gasping for air.
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Mayo Clinic News Network, chicagotribune.com, "Why moms-to-be need vaccines during pregnancy," 8 Nov. 2019 One hallmark of an intelligent animal is the development of multilevel societies, full of complex relationships.
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Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "These Beautiful Blue Turkey-Like Birds Have Tiny Brains and Huge Social Networks," 6 Nov. 2019 Overall, the Nuggets are scoring around seven points fewer per game and their assists, a hallmark of last year’s offense, are down six per game.
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Mike Singer, The Denver Post, "The Nuggets are 4-2, but their offense has been underwhelming. Here’s the problem.," 5 Nov. 2019 This brand of sly, subversive humor has become a hallmark of the Hong Kong protests.
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Jiayang Fan, The New Yorker, "Hong Kong’s Protest Movement and the Fight for the City’s Soul," 9 Dec. 2019 Hong Kong’s leader has said the ban on masks, which have become a hallmark of the protests, is aimed at deterring radical behavior.
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Fox News, "Hong Kong demonstrators parody Xi Jinping, LeBron James to protest government ban on masks," 19 Oct. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Holidays, inasmuch as they are illustrated by their ornaments and decorations, are also hallmarked by their customary foods, which spangle around festive table centerpieces as the true spectacle of the occasions.
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Myles Poydras, The Atlantic, "The History Behind One of America’s Most Beloved Desserts," 5 Jan. 2020 Byrne recalled her brother’s sense of humor, hallmarked an uncanny ability to impersonate anyone.
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Michael Brice-saddler, Washington Post, "Among the Texas shooting victims: A high-school student, a beloved uncle and a father of two," 1 Sep. 2019 Opponents said the bill would have eroded Hong Kong’s hallmark judicial independence and exposed its residents to politicized cases.
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Washington Post, "Hong Kong protests move forward despite police objections," 11 Aug. 2019 Despite a season hallmarked by miscommunication between the player’s camp and the Spurs, Leonard and Popovich maintained a solid — albeit often long-distance — relationship.
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Jeff Mcdonald, San Antonio Express-News, "Where will Kawhi play next season, and other burning Spurs questions?," 28 Apr. 2018 The inside linebacker blitzes that have long hallmarked Pittsburgh’s scheme also remain.
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Andy Benoit, SI.com, "The Pittsburgh Steelers Might Have the Best Defense in the AFC," 20 Sep. 2017 The driving idea behind the projects has been to embed the cooperative multiplayer experience within the company’s hallmark open-world games.
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Gieson Cacho, The Mercury News, "Review: ‘Ghost Recon: Wildlands’ — flawed but deep open-world shooter," 7 Mar. 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hallmark.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for hallmark
hallmark
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of hallmark
: a quality, ability, etc., that is typical of a particular person or thing
: an official mark that is put on gold and silver objects in Britain to indicate their purity
See the full definition for hallmark in the English Language Learners Dictionary
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Time Traveler for hallmark
The first known use of hallmark was in 1721
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