cornerstone

B2 Topic:General Vocabulary

Also spelled corner-stone

US /ˈkɔrnɝˌstoʊn/ See IPA manual

Freq #22592

Meanings

1

noun
The most important part of something, on which everything else depends.

Exceptional service is the cornerstone of the hospitality industry.
2

noun
A stone at the base corner of a building, often laid in a ceremony with a date inscribed on it.

The cornerstone of the church was laid in 1890.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the most important part of... foundation

Word family

Forms cornerstones

Etymology

From Middle English corner ston; equivalent to corner + stone. The figurative sense is in part after Psalm 118:22, and is also quoted several times in the New Testament.

corner ston Middle English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# cornerstone

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈkɔrnɝˌstoʊn/
**Frequency rank:** 22592

## Meanings
1. The most important part of something, on which everything else depends.
2. A stone at the base corner of a building, often laid in a ceremony with a date inscribed on it.

## Examples
- Exceptional service is the cornerstone of the hospitality industry.
- The cornerstone of the church was laid in 1890.

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: corner ston

## Etymology
From Middle English corner ston; equivalent to corner + stone. The figurative sense is in part after Psalm 118:22, and is also quoted several times in the New Testament.

## AI Etymology
cornerstone comes from Middle English corner ston; equivalent to corner + stone. The figurative sense is in part after Psalm 118:22, and is also quoted several times in the New Testament. Current senses include The most important part of something, on which everything else depends and A stone at the base corner of a building, often laid in a ceremony with a date inscribed on it.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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