masterpiece

noun mas·ter·piece \ ˈmas-tər-ˌpēs \

Updated on: 16 May 2018

Definition of masterpiece

1 : a work done with extraordinary skill; especially : a supreme intellectual or artistic achievement

2 : a piece of work presented to a medieval guild as evidence of qualification for the rank of master

See masterpiece defined for English-language learners

See masterpiece defined for kids

Examples of masterpiece in a Sentence

The painting was immediately recognized as a masterpiece.
Herman Melville's masterpiece was Moby-Dick.
Her study of apes is a masterpiece.

Recent Examples of masterpiece from the Web

Is Green, the director of weird comic masterpieces like Pineapple Express and several episodes of Vice Principals, going to turn it into a comedy?

— joshua rivera, GQ, "They're Remaking Friday Night Lights and We Feel Some Type of Way About It," 10 May 2018
Verdi’s masterpiece of love and tuberculosis takes the stage at Opera San José, with a cast headed by soprano Amanda Kingston, tenor Pene Pati and baritone Malcolm MacKenzie.

— chronicle staff report, San Francisco Chronicle, "Bay Area arts and entertainment picks, April 13," 13 Apr. 2018
Despite this burden, Schubert produced an astonishing series of masterpieces in his final year.

— christian hertzog, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Inon Barnatan and Garrick Ohlsson deliver masterful performances of late Schubert music," 25 Mar. 2018
But an amazing night for Oladipo, who had struggled mightily since his 32-point masterpiece in Game 1.

— gregg doyel, Indianapolis Star, "Doyel: Pacers bloody LeBron, blow out Cavs, set up Game 7," 27 Apr. 2018
More likely, Ford could be simply saying that his legacy will live on in his masterpiece, the park.

— ashley hoffman, Time, "Will We See Dr. Ford in Westworld Season 2? Let's Discuss," 20 Apr. 2018
Her masterpiece eventually graced the floors of the Executive Mansion, making the White House a true home.

— anna gunther, CBS News, "Barbara Bush remembered: Presidents, political leaders pay tribute to former first lady," 17 Apr. 2018
The resonance of Kushner’s masterpiece in 2018 goes deeper than Reagan-Trump parallels.

— steven winn, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Angels,’ a once-prescient masterpiece, returns to its Bay Area birthplace," 15 Apr. 2018
Yet Descartes’s masterpiece took Europe by storm and for decades was the main textbook of the Cartesian school of science.

— yoram hazony, WSJ, "The Dark Side of the Enlightenment," 6 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'masterpiece.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of masterpiece

1600

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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masterpiece Synonyms

Synonyms

chef d'oeuvre, classic, magnum opus, masterwork;

Near Antonyms

bomb, catastrophe, clunker, debacle (also débâcle), disaster, dud, failure, fiasco, fizzle, flop, loser, turkey, washout;

blockbuster, megahit, smash, success, winner;

gem, jewel, prize, treasure;

MASTERPIECE Defined for English Language Learners

masterpiece

noun

Definition of masterpiece for English Language Learners

: a great book, painting, piece of music, movie, etc.; also : the best book, painting, piece of music, movie, etc., by a particular person
: something done with great skill