Home / Dictionary / Pinnacle

Pinnacle Common

Pinnacle has 7 different meanings across 2 categories:

Noun · Verb

Definitions
Noun
1

(architecture) a slender upright spire at the top of a buttress of tower

"The ancient cathedral features a delicate pinnacle crowning the western tower's main buttress."

2

the highest level or degree attainable; the highest stage of development

"his landscapes were deemed the acme of beauty"

"the artist's gifts are at their acme"

"at the height of her career"

"the peak of perfection"

"summer was at its peak"

"...catapulted Einstein to the pinnacle of fame"

"the summit of his ambition"

"so many highest superlatives achieved by man"

"at the top of his profession"

3

a lofty peak

"The climbers reached the pinnacle of the mountain just as the sun began to set."

4

The highest point.

"The mountain's summit marked the geographical pinnacle where the air grew thin and cold."

Verb
1

surmount with a pinnacle

"pinnacle a pediment"

2

raise on or as if on a pinnacle

"He did not want to be pinnacled"

3

To place on a pinnacle.

"The statue was placed on a pinnacle overlooking the city square."

Example Sentences
"his landscapes were deemed the acme of beauty" noun
"the artist's gifts are at their acme" noun
"at the height of her career" noun
"the peak of perfection" noun
"summer was at its peak" noun
"...catapulted Einstein to the pinnacle of fame" noun
"the summit of his ambition" noun
"so many highest superlatives achieved by man" noun
"at the top of his profession" noun
"pinnacle a pediment" verb
Related Terms
Broader Terms (hypernyms)
steeple degree peak surmount raise

Origin

The word "pinnacle" comes from the Old French term pinacle, which was borrowed from Late Latin pinnaculum. This Latin root originally meant a peak or spire and is related to the Latin word for a feather or wing, pinna.

Rhyming Words
cle icle secle macle cycle sicle socle uncle zocle circle sarcle boucle surcle guncle mascle oracle acicle icicle nuncle muscle
Compare
Pinnacle vs