lapidary

lapidary

lae pih deI ri

noun

1. one whose work is to cut, polish, or engrave gemstones, or the work itself.

2. an expert on or dealer in gemstones.
example: She consulted a lapidary about the value of her engagement ring.

quotation: “People that had lighted on a new thought or a thought that they fancied new, came to Emerson, as the finder of a glittering gem hastens to a lapidary, to ascertain its quality and value.“ (Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Mosses from an Old Manse”)

adjective

1. of or pertaining to gemstones or the cutting and polishing of them.

2. of or pertaining to inscriptions, or words fit to be inscribed, in stone.

quotation: “The writer of an epitaph should not be considered as saying nothing but what is strictly true. Allowance must be made for some degree of exaggerated praise. In lapidary inscriptions a man is not upon oath.” (Boswell, Life of Johnson)

3. marked by exactness and refinement.
example: He wasted the finest lapidary prose style of his generation on weekly book reviews.