pearl

CEFRB1

/pɜːl/

noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A smooth valuable ball formed inside some shellfish.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    Something precious.

Examples

  • Good care should be taken of the pearl.

  • Hawaii is often referred to as "The Pearl of the Pacific."

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
1

Also pronounced

  • [pʰəːɫ]

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. To set or adorn with pearls, or with mother-of-pearl.

  2. Nacre; mother-of-pearl.

  3. A capsule of gelatin or similar substance containing liquid for, e.g., medicinal application.

More examples

In context

  • It is merely an imitation pearl.

  • There is gold, and multitude of pearles: but a precious vessel the lips of knowledge.

  • clinical pearls

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The diver found a shiny white blank inside an oyster shell.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

Inherited from Middle English perle, from Old French perle of uncertain etymology. Probably via unattested Medieval Latin *pernula, from Latin perna (“haunch; a marine bivalve shaped like a leg of lamb”) but also derived from Medieval Latin perla, from Latin perula (“little bag”). Its typographic use follows the name given by Jean Jannon to the type used in his miniature editions of Vergil, Horace, & the New Testament in the 1620s, which were the smallest printed works to his time. Its surfing use derives from the supposed resemblance to pearl diving.