gem1
/dʒɛm
/noun
1A precious or semi-precious stone, especially when cut and polished or engraved: a pagoda embellished with precious gems...
- These ornaments are made in silver, and precious and semi-precious gems are used to embellish them.
- On display are approximately two hundred examples of semiprecious and precious gems, decorative stones, and outstanding pieces of jewelry.
- Members were instructed in the various settings of precious stones and gems.
Synonyms
jewel, precious stone, semi-precious stone, stone, solitaire, brilliant, baguette, cabochon
archaic bijou
1.1Used in names of some brilliantly coloured hummingbirds, e.g. mountain gem.
2An outstanding person or thing: this architectural gem of a palace...
- The cathedral is now a vibrant and living component of the cultural and religious life of Waterford city and is one of our most treasured architectural gems.
- Now you can find all of these wonderful pop gems living in a different world.
- One of the city's architectural gems is to be restored to glory by a multi-million pound revamp - but some of Manchester's oldest trees will be felled in the process.
Synonyms
best, finest, pride, prize, treasure, glory, wonder, flower, pearl, jewel, the jewel in the crown, masterpiece, chef-d'œuvre, leading light, pick, choice, paragon, prime, cream, the crème de la crème, elite, elect;
outstanding example, shining example, perfect example of its kind, model, epitome, archetype, ideal, exemplar, nonpareil, paradigm, embodiment, personification, quintessence, standard, prototype, apotheosis, acme
informal one in a million, the bee's knees, something else, the tops
verb (gems, gemming, gemmed) [with object] (usually as adjective gemmed) literary
Decorate with or as with gems: a gemmed necklace tiny drops of sweat gemmed his forehead...
- With the gemmed undergarments being worth a reputed £10,000, to not show them to anybody would be even more pointless than making them in the first place.
- Their cheeks are gemmed with tears lit pink in the coming sun.
- Because he squirmed in protest as she tried to remove his gilded, gemmed gauntlets, she had to leave them on.
Derivatives
gem-like
- Its 14 gem-like songs remain true to the deepest traditions of fado, the breathtakingly lyrical and melancholic music of Portugal.
- Set, gem-like, between the mountains and the sea, Cape Town is a spectacular city.
- Rob stared, in awe, his eyes large and glassy and gem-like.
gemmy
/ adjective ...- In the first two years of mining, forty-three pockets have been discovered, two of which have produced large gemmy crystals of tourmaline rivaling the best material that Mount Mica has produced in its 185-year record.
- These crystals, ranging in size from less than 2.5 cm to 10 cm across, have been found with fine, gemmy smoky quartz crystals from a few centimeters to over 30 cm long.
- When any new material appears in quantity - especially something as exciting as these gemmy and perfect crystals - there is always speculation about where it comes from.
Origin
Old English gim, from Latin gemma 'bud, jewel'; influenced in Middle English by Old French gemme.
Rhymes
GEM2
abbreviation
Ground-effect machine.