masterpiece

noun

mas·​ter·​piece ˈma-stər-ˌpēs 

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

Synonyms

• classic
• masterwork

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 on the Web

Italy is a living, breathing masterpiece—where Rome’s ornate fountains and ruins echo with imperial grandeur—from the roar of the Colosseum to the hush of twilight in Piazza Navona. —Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025

Get inspired by the pollinator garden and create sidewalk chalk masterpieces. —Joe Rassel, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2025

That massive 1986 box-office hit, written and directed by James Cameron, turned the haunted house horror of the first film into a masterpiece of militaristic Reagan-era blockbuster filmmaking. —Noel Murray, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2025

His critique can be seen as the creator of a legendary character feeling that the new leadership mishandled his masterpiece. —Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for masterpiece

• altarpiece
• centerpiece
• frontispiece
• mantelpiece
• pilates
• summarise
• syntheses
• apiece
• aris
• assise
• caprice
• cerise

Kids Definition

masterpiece

noun

mas·​ter·​piece ˈmas-tər-ˌpēs 

: a work done with great skill

especially : a supreme intellectual or artistic achievement