touchstone
/ˈtʌtʃstəʊn
/noun
1A piece of fine-grained dark schist or jasper formerly used for testing alloys of gold by observing the colour of the mark which they made on it.Small black stones were used as touchstones to test the colour, and hence purity, of gold....
- ‘To touch’ in reference to fine metals such as gold refers to the touchstone used to test the purity of the metal.
- The same example can be cited: in spite of producing unlimited quantities of gold, the touchstone remains the same.
1.1A standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized: they tend to regard grammar as the touchstone of all language performance...
- We see the standard touchstones - the Wailing Wall, the Dome of the Rock - but we also see the streets, Jerusalem as a town, a city where Jews and Arabs both live.
- By the Second World War the toleration of COs had begun to be recognized as a touchstone of mature liberalism.
- Nor has he challenged the appellant's case that the requirements of the Convention provide a touchstone for judging the rationality of his decision and the policy pursuant to which it was reached.
Synonyms
criterion, standard, yardstick, benchmark, barometer, litmus test, indicator, indication;
measure, point of reference, norm, gauge, reference, test, guide, guideline, exemplar, model, pattern