jewel of the first water
- idiom
- Archaic
:
joya de primera agua
- This diamond is truly a jewel of the first water.
Examples
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The violinist's performance was a jewel of the first water, dazzling the audience with her skill.
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Their new store design is truly a jewel of the first water among modern retail spaces.
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This diamond is indeed a jewel of the first water.
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The necklace features several jewels of the first water.
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The violinist's performance was a jewel of the first water, dazzling the audience with her skill.
-
Their new store design is truly a jewel of the first water among modern retail spaces.
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This diamond is indeed a jewel of the first water.
Synonyms
71
3.0
A person or thing that is very good and admired
15
3.3
A hard, shiny stone cut and polished for use in jewelry
6
3.4
A rare valuable gem like a diamond used in jewelry
Antonyms
How Excellent
Surface Forms
Morphology
jewel + of + the + first + water
The sense 'of the highest quality' is not transparently built from the literal words: 'first water' is an archaic/idiomatic qualifier referring to gem clarity, not actual water, so the overall meaning cannot be predicted from 'jewel' + 'first' + 'water'. A B1 learner who knows the constituent words but hasn't seen this idiom would very likely not infer the intended evaluative meaning, so it should be treated as opaque.
Etymology
Jewel of the first water comes from people who sold jewels, who judged gems by how clear their water was. So, a jewel of the 'first' water was as clear as pure water, and calling something a jewel of the first water means 'outstanding' or 'the very best'.