top-shelf
adjective
1
: of the best quality
top-shelf products
Reading does have one top-shelf tourist attraction, a gorgeous pagoda that sits atop a mountain.—
Joe Queenan
Joe Queenan2
[from the placement of sexually explicit magazines for sale on high shelves out of the reach of children] British
: containing pornographic material
top-shelf magazines
This year, retailers are going to come under increased pressure to clean up their acts. Of course, they're not obliged to sell top-shelf mags.—The Grocer
The GrocerExamples of top-shelf in a Sentence
hoping to impress the new neighbors, she brought a top-shelf wine as a housewarming gift
Recent Examples on the Web
The top-shelf relievers presumed to be available are all right-handed: Tampa Bay’s Pete Fairbanks, Baltimore’s Félix Bautista, Angels’ Kenley Jansen and Washington’s Kyle Finnegan.
—Anthony Stitt, Forbes.com, 16 June 2025
Edmonton drew within 3-2 when Darnell Nurse went top-shelf over Sergei Bobrovsky’s left shoulder, then tied it 3-3 later in the second on a Vasily Podkolzin backhander as the home crowd went stunned-quiet.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
With pale blue walls, architectural displays and top-shelf names, Tender looks more like the type of a polished retailer one finds in Manhattan or Los Angeles.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 13 June 2025
An animatronic Reed Hastings will inform guests about Netflix’s humble beginnings and meteoric rise, from mail-order DVD service to top-shelf streamer.
—Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 12 June 2025
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Anthony Stitt, Forbes.com, 16 June 2025
Edmonton drew within 3-2 when Darnell Nurse went top-shelf over Sergei Bobrovsky’s left shoulder, then tied it 3-3 later in the second on a Vasily Podkolzin backhander as the home crowd went stunned-quiet.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
With pale blue walls, architectural displays and top-shelf names, Tender looks more like the type of a polished retailer one finds in Manhattan or Los Angeles.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 13 June 2025
An animatronic Reed Hastings will inform guests about Netflix’s humble beginnings and meteoric rise, from mail-order DVD service to top-shelf streamer.
—Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for top-shelf
Cite this Entry
“Top-shelf.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/top-shelf. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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