noun

• 1A work of outstanding artistry, skill, or workmanship.

  ‘a great literary masterpiece’

  More example sentences

  • ‘It was noted for its woodcuts and is still considered one of the masterpieces of graphic art.’
  • ‘His clocks were masterpieces of skill, precision, ingenuity, and determination.’
  • ‘Consequently, the masterpieces of sculpture and painting were bought in and around their time and many, if not most, are permanently lodged in museums.’
  • ‘A masterpiece by Claude Monet, not seen in public for over a century, is on sale to the highest bidder.’
  • ‘Walking through the Louvre I saw numerous artists with pencil and paper in hand, sketching the great masterpieces.’
  • ‘He has devoted some forty years of research, thinking and hard and repeated looking to the masterpieces of Impressionist painting.’
  • ‘The collection has grown to include masterpieces of Japanese modern and contemporary art.’
  • ‘His reputation rests above all, however, on the delicate, haunting pastels that are his masterpieces.’
  • ‘Seven hundred years later ' The Canterbury Tales' is still considered one of the greatest English literary masterpieces.’
  • ‘You have trivialized a great masterpiece of Indian cinema.’
  • ‘The Decalogue episodes are commonly considered masterpieces of world cinema.’
  • ‘Although known primarily as cinematic masterpieces, each of these movies was originally produced onstage.’
  • ‘The construction of this Gothic style architectural masterpiece took about two centuries.’
  • ‘First of all, the museum would be an architectural masterpiece.’
  • ‘She loved to eat, to cook, and to serve culinary masterpieces of her own creation.’
  • ‘You could inspire an artist to paint a masterpiece with you as the subject.’
  • ‘We were recently told that no artist paints a masterpiece before they are 40.’
  • ‘Today, these works are considered masterpieces and are worth millions of dollars.’
  • ‘Here's the press release summary of this latest comedy masterpiece.’
  • ‘Well, the calendar presenting a selection of rarely seen masterpieces of the mural paintings of India is finally here.’

  1. 1.1 historical A piece of work by a craftsman accepted as qualification for membership of a guild as an acknowledged master.
     ‘As an apprentice, you will eventually be preparing yourself to eventually present your masterpiece at the Great Guild Hall - hired out as a journeyman, or hired day laborer for one of our town's projects.’
     More example sentences

     • ‘The next hurdle was to produce a masterpiece that would satisfy the master of the guild so that he could assume the title of master craftsmen and would thus get membership in the guild.’
     • ‘This resulted in the practice of an apprentice producing a "masterpiece" at the end of his training which he presented to the guild's officers as proof of his ability to practice the trade.’
     • ‘From the second half of the thirteenth century onward, however, we hear, first in isolated instances and with greater frequency toward the end of the Middle Ages, of a more clearly specified challenge: in order to demonstrate his skill, the candidate must execute a work for official examination, the masterpiece.’
     • ‘Once a journeyman could provide proof of his technical and artistic skills, by showing his masterpiece, he might rise in the guild and become a master.’