nonpareils

nonpareils — noun

1. tiny round bits of sugar, often brightly coloured, that people scatter over cake

1.名詞C1
釋義

tiny round bits of sugar, often brightly coloured, that people scatter over cakes, biscuits, sweets, and other desserts as decoration.

例句

Amira pressed white nonpareils onto the edge of the wedding cake.

nonpareils on the edge of a cake

The bakery sells jars of rainbow nonpareils beside the cupcake liners.

a jar of nonpareils

同義詞
  • sprinkles

    is the broader everyday term for decorative sugar pieces in American English

  • jimmies

    is a regional American term, often especially for the long chocolate kind

  • hundreds and thousands

    is the British name for very small cake decorations of this type

文法句型

a jar of nonpareils

nonpareils on [dessert]

用法筆記

This baking sense is usually plural, even when you mean many tiny pieces rather than several separate packets. In everyday American English, many speakers simply say sprinkles; nonpareils sounds more like a shop, recipe, or packaging term.

常見錯誤

❌She sprinkled nonpareil over the cupcakes.
✅She sprinkled nonpareils over the cupcakes.
💡This decorating sense is normally used in the plural.

2. small flat pieces of chocolate coated with tiny sugar beads, often sold as bite-

2.名詞C2
釋義

small flat pieces of chocolate coated with tiny sugar beads, often sold as bite-sized sweets.

例句

Defne brought dark-chocolate nonpareils in a gold box for the host.

a box of chocolate nonpareils

After dinner, Gabriel offered coffee and a plate of mint nonpareils.

serve nonpareils after dinner

同義詞
  • dragées

    are also sugar-coated sweets, but they are often nuts or other centres rather than flat chocolate rounds

  • chocolates

    is broader and does not imply the bead-covered surface that defines nonpareils

文法句型

a box of nonpareils

serve nonpareils after dinner

用法筆記

This sense names the finished sweets themselves, not only the sugar topping on top of another dessert. It commonly appears in gift-box, confectionery, and holiday-candy contexts.

常見錯誤

❌The tin held only loose nonpareils for decorating biscuits.
✅The tin held chocolate nonpareils for serving with coffee.
💡In this sense the word refers to the finished sweet, not just the sugar beads.

3. people who are so outstanding in a skill or quality that hardly anyone else can

3.名詞C2
釋義

people who are so outstanding in a skill or quality that hardly anyone else can equal them.

例句

In the village choir, the two older sisters were nonpareils of patience.

nonpareils of + quality

Among apprentice chefs, Hiro and Tanvi became nonpareils for clean knife work.

同義詞
  • paragons

    is the closest formal plural, stressing near-perfect excellence

  • standouts

    is less formal and suits modern speech better

  • masters

    focuses more on high skill than on being beyond comparison

反義詞
  • mediocrities

    people whose quality is ordinary rather than exceptional

文法句型

nonpareils of + quality

regard someone as nonpareils

用法筆記

A literary or very formal plural noun. Modern speakers are more likely to use paragon, master, or simply say someone is unmatched, so this sense usually appears in elevated praise.

常見錯誤

❌The singer was a nonpareils in her generation.
✅The singer was one of the nonpareils in her generation.
💡This headword is the plural form; the singular form is nonpareil.

nonpareils — adjective