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View synonyms for quintessence

quintessence

[ kwin-tes-uhns ]

noun

  1. the pure and concentrated essence of a substance.
  2. the most perfect embodiment of something.
  3. (in ancient and medieval philosophy) the fifth essence or element, ether, supposed to be the constituent matter of the heavenly bodies, the others being air, fire, earth, and water.


quintessence

/ kwɪnˈtɛsəns /

noun

  1. the most typical representation of a quality, state, etc
  2. an extract of a substance containing its principle in its most concentrated form
  3. (in ancient and medieval philosophy) ether, the fifth and highest essence or element after earth, water, air, and fire, which was thought to be the constituent matter of the heavenly bodies and latent in all things
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Other Words From

  • quin·tes·sen·tial [kwin-t, uh, -, sen, -sh, uh, l], adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of quintessence1

1400–50; Middle English < Medieval Latin quīnta essentia fifth essence
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Word History and Origins

Origin of quintessence1

C15: via French from Medieval Latin quinta essentia the fifth essence, translation of Greek pemptē ousia
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Example Sentences

That, America, is the quintessence of naturally occurring British-cute.

The actor is the quintessence of smooth, first as Remington Steele, then James Bond.

In recent years, Stoner entered a category of which it soon became the quintessence.

Yes, Holmes was the quintessence of the Victorian rationalism, “the most perfect and reasoning machine that the world had seen.”

“Innocence is the quintessence of the snapshot,” Lisette Model would write.

Preserve this precious quintessence of mercury, which is exceedingly volatile, in a well-closed vessel for further use.

This drama is the quintessence of all that Gorky has, up to this time, written on the "ex-man," whom he has thoroughly "explored."

Only as a subscriber, possessing a numbered set of a limited edition, could one obtain the quintessence of literature.

They are the quaint quintessence of conservatism, and will occupy youthful minds menaced by modernism.

Ten beds, and only one occupied, by a freckled, tousled quintessence of fractiousness in a blue wrapper.

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