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Paragon Has Old Italian and Greek Roots
Paragon derives from the Old Italian word paragone, which literally means "touchstone." A touchstone is a black stone that was formerly used to judge the purity of gold or silver. The metal was rubbed on the stone and the color of the streak it left indicated its quality. In modern English, both touchstone and paragon have come to signify a standard against which something should be judged. Ultimately, paragon comes from the Greek parakonan, meaning "to sharpen," from the prefix para- ("alongside of") and akonē, meaning "whetstone."
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Examples of paragon in a Sentence
Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 28 Jan. 2025
Hence my problem with holding those 3 teams up as paragons of rebuilding.
—Josh Yohe, The Athletic, 7 Jan. 2025
The Palace of Versailles, known as château de Versailles in French, is a paragon of Baroque architecture that once served as a royal residence and the de facto capital of France—but its beginnings are far more humble.
—Morgan Goldberg, Architectural Digest, 30 Dec. 2024
Together in a two-story rental house off of Hollywood Boulevard, a small band of eager artisans created one of the paragons of American cinema.
—Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Paragon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paragon. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.
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