non·pa·reil (n
n
p
-r
l
)
adj.
Having no equal; peerless: the Yankees’ nonpareil center fielder.
n.
1. A person or thing that has no equal; a paragon.
2. See painted bunting.
3. A small, flat chocolate drop covered with white pellets of sugar.
[Middle English nounparalle, from Old French nonpareil : non-, non- + pareil, equal (from Vulgar Latin *pariculus, diminutive of Latin p
r, equal; see per-2 in Indo-European roots).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
