Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations

Click to move up the list of words
hall tree
hallah
Hallandale
Halle
Hallel
hallelujah
Halley’s comet
halliard
hallmark
hallo (1)
hallo (2)
halloo
halloumi
hallow
hallowed
Halloween
halls of ivy
Click to move down the list of words
Print Preview
See pronunciation key
Search for "hallmark" in all of MSN Encarta
E-mail this entry
Blog about this entry on MSN Spaces
Download the MSN Encarta Right-Click Dictionary

hallmark

hall·mark [ háwl mrk ]


noun  (plural hall·marks)
Definition:
 
1. mark of quality: a mark showing that something is of high quality

2. distinguishing mark: a feature of something that distinguishes it from others
Discreet service is the hallmark of a fine restaurant.

3. official mark on precious metal: in Great Britain, a mark stamped on articles made of gold, silver, or platinum to show that the metal used meets the proper standards of purity



transitive verb  (past and past participle hall·marked, present participle hall·mark·ing, 3rd person present singular hall·marks)
Definition:
 
stamp something with mark indicating quality: to stamp an object made of gold, silver, or platinum to show that the metal used meets the proper standards of purity

[Early 18th century. After Goldsmiths' Hall in London]
Englishtown: Learn English online
Encarta Message Boards (© Rubberball/Jupiterimages)
Upgrade your Encarta experience
Encarta RSS Feeds
© 2008 Microsoft