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Objects designed for the adornment of the body are called jewelry. While modern jewelry is made of gold, silver, or platinum, often with precious or semiprecious stones, it evolved from shells, animal teeth, and other items used as body decoration in prehistoric times. Over the centuries it came to be a sign of social or religious rank, and in Renaissance Italy, jewelry-making reached the status of a fine art. By the 19th century, industrialization brought jewelry within the reach of the middle class. Firms opened by such jewelers as Carl Fabergé and Louis Comfort Tiffany achieved great success by making fine jewelry for the wealthy.
Examples of jewelry in a Sentence
Chris Livesay, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2026
While Moses was up on Mount Sinai receiving the tablets, the people of Israel grew restless and decided to melt down their jewelry and create a golden calf.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
High jewelry pieces by Levuma completed the look.
—Christian Allaire, Vogue, 7 Feb. 2026
Lee echoes the same sentiment and notes that certain specialty products, like overcomplicated or time-consuming jewelry cleaners, aren't worth hanging onto.
—Tessa Cooper, The Spruce, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for jewelry
Cite this Entry
“Jewelry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jewelry. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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