supreme

See also: Supreme and suprême

English

Alternative forms

• (cooking): suprême

Etymology

From Middle English suppreme, partly from Middle French suppreme, supreme and partly from its etymon, Latin suprēmus, superlative of superus (“that is above”). Doublet of supremo, and equivalent to super +‎ -eme.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌs(j)uːˈpɹiːm/, /ˌs(j)ʊˈpɹiːm/, /ˌs(j)əˈpɹiːm/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌsuˈpɹim/, /səˈpɹim/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːm

Adjective

supreme (comparative supremer or more supreme, superlative supremest or most supreme)

1. Dominant, having power over all others.

   Synonyms: predominant, preponderant, regnant

   • 2013 June 21, Karen McVeigh, “US rules human genes can't be patented”, in The Guardian Weekly‎^[1], volume 189, number 2, page 10:

     The US supreme court has ruled unanimously that natural human genes cannot be patented, a decision that scientists and civil rights campaigners said removed a major barrier to patient care and medical innovation.

2. (sometimes postpositive) Greatest, most excellent, extreme, most superior, highest, or utmost.

   supreme disgust

   supreme courage

   • 2021 February 9, Jenna Weissman Joselit, “Was Bugsy Siegel the ‘Supreme Gangster’? A Biography Makes the Case”, in The New York Times‎^[2], →ISSN:

     But they will come away with an enhanced understanding of, and even sympathy for, the man who, according to at least one of his associates, was the “supreme gangster in the U.S., the top man … the big boss.”

3. (botany) Situated at the highest part or point.

Antonyms

• inferior
• minor

Derived terms

• reign supreme
• supremacism
• supremacist
• supremacy
• supreme being
• supreme court
• supreme leader
• Supreme Leader
• supreme moment
• supreme sacrifice
• Supreme Soviet

 

Related terms

• super

Translations

dominant

• Armenian: գերագույն (hy) (geraguyn), բարձրագույն (hy) (barjraguyn)
• Belarusian: гало́ўны (be) (halóŭny), вярхо́ўны (vjarxóŭny), найвышэ́йшы (najvyšéjšy)
• Bulgarian: върховен (bg) (vǎrhoven)
• Catalan: suprem (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 最高 (zh) (zuìgāo), 至上 (zh) (zhìshàng), 至高 (zh) (zhìgāo)

• Dutch: opperst (nl), opperste (nl), oppermachtige (nl)
• Esperanto: supera (eo)
• Finnish: ylivertainen (fi)
• French: suprême (fr)
• Galician: supremo (gl)
• Georgian: უზენაესი (uzenaesi), უმაღლესი (umaɣlesi), უდიდესი (udidesi)
• German: höchster (de), oberster (de)
• Greek: ανώτατος (el) (anótatos)

  Ancient: ἀνώτατος (anṓtatos)

• Hindi: सर्वोच्च (sarvocc)
• Hungarian: legfelsőbb (hu)
• Icelandic: æðstur
• Interlingua: supreme
• Irish: ardcheannasach
• Italian: supremo (it) m, suprema (it) f
• Japanese: 至高の (ja) (しこうの, shikō no), 最高の (ja) (さいこうの, saikō no)
• Korean: 최고(最高) (ko) (choego)
• Latin: supremus
• Macedonian: врховен (vrhoven), највисок (najvisok)
• Malay: tertinggi (ms), agung (ms)
• Maori: taioreore
• Norman: suprême
• Polish: najwyższy (pl)
• Portuguese: supremo (pt)
• Rapa Nui: mau
• Romanian: suprem (ro)
• Russian: верхо́вный (ru) (verxóvnyj), вы́сший (ru) (výsšij), высоча́йший (ru) (vysočájšij), наивы́сший (ru) (naivýsšij)
• Spanish: supremo (es)
• Turkish: yüksek (tr), yüce (tr), ulu (tr)
• Ukrainian: верхо́вний (uk) (verxóvnyj), найви́щий (uk) (najvýščyj)
• Vietnamese: tối cao (vi) (最高)

Highest, utmost

• Hindi: सर्वोच्च (sarvocc)
• Maori: ikeike

Verb

supreme (third-person singular simple present supremes, present participle supreming, simple past and past participle supremed)

1. (transitive, cooking) To divide a citrus fruit into its segments, removing the skin, pith, membranes, and seeds.

Noun

supreme (plural supremes)

1. The highest point.
2. (cooking) A pizza having a large number of the most common toppings, such as pepperoni, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, olives, etc.
   • 2010, Michael Jayfox, E. Chas McSween, Intravenus DeMilo, Enron Hubbard, Hunter McKenzie-Smythe, Flash Johnson, Things Bogans Like, Sydney: Hachette, page 117:

     Faced with a choice between the Supreme, the Hawaiian [...], the Capricciosa or the Meat Lovers', the bogan will invariably gravitate to the meal most likely to induce a fatal disease.

3. (cooking) A breast of chicken or duck with the wing bone attached.
4. (cooking) Anything from which all skin, bones, and other parts which are not eaten have been removed, such as a skinless fish fillet.

Further reading

• “supreme”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “supreme”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “supreme”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• eusperm, presume

Interlingua

Adjective

supreme (comparative plus supreme, superlative le plus supreme)

1. supreme

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /suˈprɛ.me/
• Rhymes: -ɛme
• Hyphenation: su‧prè‧me

Adjective

supreme f pl

1. feminine plural of supremo

Anagrams

• presume

Latin

Adjective

suprēme

1. vocative masculine singular of suprēmus