quintessence
/kwɪnˈtɛs.əns/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.35 in modern English
23
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A thing that is the most perfect example of its type; the most perfect embodiment of something; epitome, prototype.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The fifth alchemical element, or essence, after earth, air, fire, and water that fills the universe beyond the terrestrial sphere.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
A hypothetical form of dark energy postulated to explain observations of an accelerating universe.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "As families and kindreds sometimes do; producing, after long ages of unnoted notability, some living quintescence of all the qualities they had, to flame forth as a man world-noted […]"
- "The Pagans did well enough; I cordially admire the refinement of their minds; but it has been reserved for a Christian country to attain this extreme, this quintessence, this absolute of poignancy."
- "For vvhat is ſilke but eu'n a Quinteſſence, / Made vvithout hands beyond al humane ſenſe? / A quinteſſence? nay vvel it may be call'd, / A deathleſſe tincture, ſent vs from the skies, / VVhoſe colour ſtands, vvhose gloſſe is ne're appalld, […]"
- "Let ther be Light, ſaid God, and forthwith Light, / Ethereal, firſt of things, quinteſſence pure, / Sprung from the Deep, […]"
- "Dickie, a one-man entertainment empire, was at least as significant as those humanitarian titans he brought to life on screen. He was also the quintessence of kindness and modesty, and it was a privilege to have known and worked with him"
Etymology
PIE word *pénkʷe From Middle English, borrowed from Middle French, from Medieval Latin quinta essentia (“fifth essence, aether”), equivalent to quint- + essence. "Essence" in this context is a synonym for "element". In pre-atomic/Aristotelian theory, there are four known elements or essences — Earth, Air, Fire and Water — and a putative fifth element (aether), which is considered to be of exceptional superior quality to the other four basic elements.