masterstroke means an action which demonstrates great skill or artistry. It carries an Arena rating of 1801, earned across 50 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, masterstroke ranks #836 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #2,145 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #2,215 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #3,157 of 17,142 for Most Ingenious Words.
Why “masterstroke” is a great word
MASTERSTROKE — [Noun] An action or achievement that demonstrates consummate skill or ingenuity. From master (meaning one having authority or great skill) + stroke (meaning a single effective action or movement). First recorded in 1670–80. Unlike a “fluke,” which suggests success by chance, or a “blunder,” which denotes a clumsy error, a masterstroke is the product of deliberate, expert execution. It is the general’s feigned retreat that lures an army into ruin, the chef’s single pinch of salt that transfigures a dish, or the painter’s decisive line that resolves a composition—the rare, crystalline proof that profound understanding can be willed into a single, irreversible fact.
Etymology
From master + stroke.
noun
- An action which demonstrates great skill or artistry.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.