pièce de résistance

[ pyes duh rey-zee-stahns; English pee-es duh ri-zee-stahns ]

noun

, French.

, plural pièces de ré·sis·tance [pyes d, uh, , r, ey-zee-, stahns, pee-, es, d, uh, ri-zee-, stahns].

1. the principal dish of a meal.
2. the most noteworthy or prized feature, aspect, event, article, etc., of a series or group; special item or attraction.

pièce de résistance

/ pjɛs də rezistɑ̃s /

noun

1. the principal or most outstanding item in a series or creative artist's work
2. the main dish of a meal

Word History and Origins

Origin of pièce de résistance¹

First recorded in 1780–90; from French: literally, “piece of resistance”; development of senses is unclear

Word History and Origins

Origin of pièce de résistance¹

lit: piece of resistance

Example Sentences

There are many great and memorable exhibits in the museum, but perhaps the pièce de résistance is the massive Olympic pool-sized ball pit that hosts intermittent light shows in which additional balls and spotlights descend from the already bulbous ceiling.

From Los Angeles Times

Its pièce de résistance is its very own AI model, called the Large Nature Model.

From Los Angeles Times

As the pièce de résistance, she harnessed herself to a Chevy Silverado — which itself was attached to a food truck trailer — and dragged it 40 feet in 40 seconds.

From Salon

But the piece de resistance was most certainly the bacon jam.

From Salon

His pièce de résistance was riding through the dining room after dinner on a bicycle with a port tray balanced on the handlebars, a trick that was noted in his obituary in The Telegraph.

From Seattle Times