quintessence

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun the fifth and highest element after air and earth and fire and water; was believed to be the substance composing all heavenly bodies
  2. noun the purest and most concentrated essence of something
  3. noun the most typical example or representative of a type

Etymology

PIE word *pénkʷe From Middle English, borrowed from Middle French, from Medieval Latin quinta essentia (“fifth essence, aether”). "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.

In classic literature

Synonyms

ether

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