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Definitions

grail

[greyl] / greɪl /
NOUN
sacred vessel
Synonyms


Frequently Asked Questions

What is another word for grail?
A grail is a type of cup, chalice, goblet, or vessel. But the word is almost always used to mean the Holy Grail or a holy grail. When capitalized, Holy Grail (or just Grail) refers to the cup that according to medieval legend was used by Jesus at the Last Supper. Due to legends about the cup’s supposed powers, it became the subject of quests by knights who hoped to locate it, including the legendary King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. (A somewhat similar legend is that of El Dorado, the legendary city of gold and treasure sought by Spanish colonizers.) This sense of Holy Grail and Grail eventually came to be used (often in lowercase) in a metaphorical way to refer to any greatly desired and sought-after objective, reward, item, or ultimate ideal. For example, a particularly rare book may be called the holy grail of rare book collecting, or winning the World Cup may be called the holy grail of soccer (football). Such things are often described as highly sought-after. A person’s ultimate desire may be called their grail. A similar term is heart’s desire. Similar but less idiomatic terms are ultimate prize and ultimate goal.
Why is the Holy Grail called a grail?
The word grail comes from a Medieval Latin word gradālis, meaning “platter.” At some point, medieval legends started to use the image of a cup (as opposed to a bowl, platter, or other vessel).

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Even so, sonic adventurers, beginning with Leopold Stokowski in the 1930s, experimented with amplification in an obsessive, seemingly quixotic effort to locate a mythical sonic grail on the Cahuenga Pass.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 16, 2026

Paul Regan claimed to have discovered the investment holy grail of high return at low risk, offering investors the chance to earn 10%, even 15% or more annually for up to 10 years, guaranteed.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 29, 2026

She recently found the holy grail of shirts for her - the Super Furry Animals-sponsored Cardiff City shirt - a legendary piece of Welsh football and music history.

From BBC Jun. 12, 2026

Everyone treats buy-and-hold as the holy grail because they are anchored to the extraordinary run from 1982 to today.

From MarketWatch May 26, 2026

I continued to refer to the Zork notes in my grail diary, which reminded me exactly how to make my way through the game’s labyrinth of rooms, passageways, and puzzles.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

And, speaking of holy grails: Judy Garland’s ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz” fetched $32.5 million.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 13, 2026

One of the holy grails of trucking is to find a way to reduce the one-third of trips that big rigs are believed to spend hauling empty trailers.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 13, 2026

“This has been one of the holy grails of remedying the Korean discount, and there’s at least a 50-50 chance of it passing this year,” he says.

From Barron's Dec. 31, 2025

But since then its ambition to track down two holy grails of physics - dark matter and dark energy - have proved elusive and some researchers believe there are cheaper options.

From BBC Feb. 4, 2024

The seraphs would sing to her And from the River Dip her cool grails of radiant Life.

From Song-Surf by Rice, Cale Young




Vocabulary lists containing grail


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