top-tier

adjective

ˈtäp-ˈtir 

: of the highest level or rank with regard to quality, reputation, or importance

Top-tier wines are the result of artisanal production techniques that demand rigorous attention to detail and, on occasion, financial sacrifice.

—Daniel Sogg

In general, the top-tier schools measure their success by the salaries that their graduates earn …

—Peter Baida

… leave fellow Republicans open to attack on what's shaping up as a top-tier issue in the 2008 elections.

—Mark Hertsgaard

Yes, this Kansas team is loaded with top-tier talent …

—Joe Posnanski

Kemp's first objective, his handlers said, was to establish himself as a top-tier contender.

—Lucy Howard>

Examples of top-tier in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But while securing top-tier GPUs has bolstered Oracle’s infrastructure position, some analysts were quick to warn that the financial risk was heavily concentrated in a single, unproven customer. —Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025

Provide a top-tier customer experience. —Ivan Terzi, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025

Aravind’s Role Beyond Staffing ITCater, founded 12 years ago, is a top-tier company with IT staffing, automation testing, and nearshore application management service expertise. —Nia Bowers, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2025

That decision and result were so routine for the two-time defending NFC North champions that almost no one in the Lions locker room talked about it, just business as usual for a top-tier team that rebounded from a 0-1 start with purpose Sunday. —Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1879, in the meaning defined above