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paragona person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: a person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈpærəɡɑːn/

Example Sentences

  • My grandmother was a paragon of patience - she never got angry even when I broke her favorite vase for the third time.
  • The teacher held up Einstein as a paragon of scientific genius.
  • He considers himself a paragon of healthy eating, yet I caught him eating pizza for breakfast yesterday.

paragon

NOUN

[/ˈpærəɡɑːn/]

a person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality

Among the sleeping soldiers, the single knight standing perfectly straight was a paragon of discipline.
💡 Concept

Among the sleeping soldiers, the single knight standing perfectly straight was a paragon of discipline.

PARA(parachute) + GON(dragon) — by saving the falling draGON with a PARAChute, the knight became a paragon of mercy.
🧠 Mnemonic

PARA(parachute) + GON(dragon) — by saving the falling draGON with a PARAChute, the knight became a paragon of mercy.

Among the broken wooden carts, the golden wagon was a true paragon of luxury.
🎵 Rhyme

Among the broken wooden carts, the golden wagon was a true paragon of luxury.

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🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˈpærəɡɑːn/
🇬🇧 UK/ˈpærəɡən/

🌳Etymology

Rootparagon

Origin

From Italian 'paragone' meaning a touchstone for testing metals, derived from Greek 'parakonē' (whetstone). The word came to mean a standard of comparison or perfect example.

Breakdown

para- (beside, against) + -gone (from Greek 'konē', whetstone/stone) = paragon (a standard or perfect example used for comparison)

🎵Rhyme

agondragonwagon
agon
dragon
wagon

🔗Collocations

paragon of virtue
paragon of excellence
moral paragon
paragon of beauty
perfect paragon

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

My grandmother was a paragon of patience - she never got angry even when I broke her favorite vase for the third time.

The teacher held up Einstein as a paragon of scientific genius.

😄 Fun example

He considers himself a paragon of healthy eating, yet I caught him eating pizza for breakfast yesterday.

The ancient Greek philosophers viewed wisdom as the paragon of human achievement.

📚Related Words

Synonyms

modelexemplaridealepitomearchetype

Antonyms

disgraceshamefailure

Related

prototypestandardbenchmarkparadigm

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