prestigious
adjective
-ˈstē-
Did you know?
You might expect, based on how adjectives are often formed in English, that today’s word is an extension of the noun prestige. However, although both words share the same Latin root, they entered English by different routes and at different times. Moreover, both adjective and noun once had more to do with trickery than respect when they were first used. Prestigious came directly from the Latin adjective praestigiosis, meaning “full of tricks” or “deceitful,” and had a similar meaning upon entering English in the mid-16th century. Praestigiosis in turn came from the plural noun praestigiae, meaning “conjurer’s tricks.” This noun also gave English the word prestige, though it first passed through French and arrived a century after prestigious. Though it wasn’t first on the block, prestige influenced prestigious in a different way, by eventually developing an extended sense of “standing or esteem.” That change spurred a similar development in prestigious, which now means simply “illustrious or esteemed.”
Examples of prestigious in a Sentence
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 2 Oct. 2025
Taking the stage in Tennessee on Monday after winning the Bassmaster College Bracket, the most prestigious title in the 2025 College Series, Berlinsky donated 100 percent of his cash winnings to the victims of Hurricane Helene.
—Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 2 Oct. 2025
The production budget must have been flush, because the network taped that inaugural joint at Atlanta's prestigious Fox Theatre, shutting down the bougiest section of Peachtree Street to roll out the red carpet in the middle of Midtown.
—Rodney Carmichael, NPR, 1 Oct. 2025
After a few years of operating as Cirkut, Walter left Toronto for Los Angeles and, under the tutelage of Luke and the other songwriters on the prestigious label, began creating a career for himself.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prestigious
Cite this Entry
“Prestigious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prestigious. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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