gem
nounverbcommon in dialogue
- //d͡ʒɛm//
- //d͡ʒɪm//
A precious stone, usually of substantial monetary value or prized for its beauty or shine.
noun
- 1
A precious stone, usually of substantial monetary value or prized for its beauty or shine.
And on her head she wore a tyre of gold, Adornd with gemmes and owches wondrous fayre, Whose passing price vneath was to be told;
Of six preceding ancestors, that gem, Conferr’d by testament to the sequent issue, Hath it been owed and worn. This is his wife; That ring’s a thousand proofs.
[…] then silent Night With this her solemn Bird and this fair Moon, And these the Gemms of Heav’n, her starrie train:
Although there are dozens of different types of gems, among the best known and most important are diamond, ruby and sapphire, emerald and other gem forms of the mineral beryl, chrysoberyl, tanzanite, tsavorite, topaz and jade.
- 2
figurativeAny precious or highly valued thing or person.
She's an absolute gem.
Standout “Hidden Knives” is the kind of new wave-leaning punk gem John Hughes would’ve loved, while “So Beneath You” is a teeth-baring, roiling tune.
Miller and Mars scoured lower Manhattan and Brooklyn for a brownstone that would meet their needs, but it wasn't until they discovered a gem nestled on a quiet Upper West Side block that they knew they'd found the one.
- 3
figurativeAny precious or highly valued thing or person. Anything of small size, or expressed within brief limits, which is regarded as a gem on account of its beauty or value, such as a small picture, a verse of poetry, or an epigram.
a gem of wit
- 4
figurativeAny precious or highly valued thing or person. Internet content of good quality.
- 5
obsoleteA gemma or leaf bud.
c. 1668, John Denham (translator), Of Old Age by Cato the Elder, Part 3, in Poems and Translations, with The Sophy, London: H. Herringman, 4th edition, 1773, p. 35, Then from the Joynts of thy prolifick Stemm A swelling Knot is raised (call’d a Gemm)
Among the crooked Lanes, on every Hedge, / The Glow-Worm lights his Gem […].
1803, John Browne Cutting, “A Succinct History of Jamaica” in Robert Charles Dallas, The History of the Maroons, London: Longman and Rees, Volume 1, p. xcii, In about twelve days the sprouts from the gems of the planted cane are seen […]
- 6
A geometrid moth of the species Orthonama obstipata.
- 7
A package containing programs or libraries for the Ruby programming language.
- 8
obsoleteA size of type between brilliant (4-point) and diamond (4½-point), running 222 lines to the foot.
- 9
A strong, dominating pitching performance.
2025, Associated Press, Crochet gets 1st career shutout and complete game as Red Sox beat Rays for 9th straight win by Associated Press, He didn’t walk a batter in his 100-pitch gem
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English gemme, gimme, yimme, ȝimme, from Old English ġimm, from Proto-West Germanic *gimmu (“gem”) and Old French gemme (“gem”), both from Latin gemma (“a swelling bud; jewel, gem”). Doublet of gemma and Gemma.
verb
- 1
To adorn with, or as if with, gems.
[T]he fair star / That gems the glittering coronet of morn, / Sheds not a light so mild, so powerful, / As that which, bursting from the Fairy's form, / Spread a purpureal halo round the scene, / Yet with an undulating motion, / Swayed to her outline gracefully.
A few bright and beautiful stars gemmed the wide concave of heaven[…].
Above was the firmament, gemmed with worlds, and sublime in immensity.
The rain Shook from fruit bushes in new showers again As I brushed past, and gemmed the window pane.
Forms
- plural
- gems
- past tense
- gemmed
- past participle
- gemmed
- present participle
- gemming
- third person singular
- gems
gem · A precious stone, usually of substantial monetary value or prized for its beauty or shine.
Gem · A native or resident of the American state of Idaho.Gemini · A constellation of the zodiac traditionally taken to…gemma · An asexual reproductive structure, as found in animals such…