Adjective

(en-adj)

Of the highest quality; splendid.

*

*:A great bargain also had been the excellent Axminster carpet which covered the floor; as, again, the arm-chair in which Bunting now sat forward, staring into the dull, small fire.

Exceptionally good of its kind.

*{{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Catherine Clabby

, magazine=(American Scientist), title= Focus on Everything , passage=Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus. That’s because the lenses that are excellent at magnifying tiny subjects produce a narrow depth of field. A photo processing technique called focus stacking has changed that.}}

Superior in kind or degree, irrespective of moral quality.

*(David Hume) (1711-1776)

*:an excellent hypocrite

*(Beaumont and Fletcher) (1603-1625)

*:Their sorrows are most excellent .

Adjective

(en adjective)

Of or pertaining to the manner of a master of an art, technique, profession, or craft; masterly.

:The brushwork on the skin tones was masterful .

In the manner of a master; very skillful.

The masterful conducting ensured the orchestra gave of their best .

Having or showing the qualities of a master vis-a-vis a dependent or subordinate; authoritative; domineering.

* 1847 , Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre , Chapter 14, Rochester to Jane by the fire:

...do you not agree with me that I have a right to be a little masterful , abrupt; perhaps exacting, sometimes, on the grounds I stated...

* 1868-69 , Louisa May Alcott, Little Women , Chapter 38:

When John spoke in that masterful tone, Meg always obeyed, and never regretted her docility.

* 1908 , E. M. Forster, A Room with a View , Chapter 18, Lucy to Mr. Beebe about Cecil:

...it was that he is so masterful . I found that he wouldn't let me go my own way.