1
as in model
someone of such unequaled perfection as to deserve imitation
she is the beau ideal of the dedicated medical professional
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in ideal
the most perfect type or example
Frank Lloyd Wright's most famous architectural creation, Falling Water, is widely regarded as the beau ideal of a building in harmony with its setting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of beau ideal
The beau ideal of illiberal democracy is, of course, Viktor Orbán of Hungary, who outlined the term in a 2014 speech.
—
Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 31 Jan. 2024
Fieg is its beau ideal.
—Kareem Rashed, Robb Report, 26 Feb. 2022
At Délice & Sarrasin, a charming French bistro in the West Village, vegans can bide their time in style, enticing new recruits with the beau ideal of meatless haute cuisine.
—David Kortava, The New Yorker, 24 Sep. 2021
If Hicks is the beau ideal in today’s MLB, then Miles Mikolas is a throwback to the Roosevelt administration.
—Michael Beller, SI.com, 23 May 2018
Conservatives like to imagine Reagan as the beau ideal of a president who faithfully adhered to their principles, but Trump is the president who has actually done it.
—Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, 23 Feb. 2018
There was a time when the beau ideal was to drive your sports car to the track, paint numbers on it, go racing and then drive home.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 6 July 2017
If Teddy Roosevelt was the Harvard beau ideal at the turn of the last century, Mark Zuckerberg is the Harvard man to be in the new millennium.
—William Stadiem, Town & Country, 2 Aug. 2016
Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 31 Jan. 2024
Fieg is its beau ideal.
—Kareem Rashed, Robb Report, 26 Feb. 2022
At Délice & Sarrasin, a charming French bistro in the West Village, vegans can bide their time in style, enticing new recruits with the beau ideal of meatless haute cuisine.
—David Kortava, The New Yorker, 24 Sep. 2021
If Hicks is the beau ideal in today’s MLB, then Miles Mikolas is a throwback to the Roosevelt administration.
—Michael Beller, SI.com, 23 May 2018
Conservatives like to imagine Reagan as the beau ideal of a president who faithfully adhered to their principles, but Trump is the president who has actually done it.
—Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, 23 Feb. 2018
There was a time when the beau ideal was to drive your sports car to the track, paint numbers on it, go racing and then drive home.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 6 July 2017
If Teddy Roosevelt was the Harvard beau ideal at the turn of the last century, Mark Zuckerberg is the Harvard man to be in the new millennium.
—William Stadiem, Town & Country, 2 Aug. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for beau ideal
Noun
-
The system works in bacteria, human cells, and even live tumor models, offering a safer and more precise alternative to traditional techniques.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
24 Oct. 2025
-
The model wore two looks that night, including an eye-turning pink two-piece lingerie set with a sparkly bustier and lacy boy briefs.—
Ingrid Vasquez,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The ideal of the Achillean warrior lives on as a touchstone for anyone attempting to understand or reinvent military culture.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Like Moore, many Philadelphians had stayed true to Garvey’s ideals even after the American government deported him in 1927.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The shareholder meetings give the youngest Browns in the sixth and seventh generations, and their distant cousins, a chance to meet and bounce ideas off one another.—
Maggie Menderski,
Louisville Courier Journal,
26 Oct. 2025
-
My idea was to do a little ‘maison,’ and to offer a look at what’s behind the brand.—
Samantha Conti,
Footwear News,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The kitchen is led by partner/chef Charbel Hayek and executive chef Gustavo Montes and will feature sashimi and nigiri, grilled main dishes and other contemporary interpretations of Japanese classics, with occasional nods to South Florida flavors.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
28 Oct. 2025
-
The show, which ran in two six-part series, in 1975 and 1979, was a huge hit in Britain and went on to become a cult classic in the United States.—
Lianne Kolirin,
CNN Money,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Prometheus is often seen as the patron saint of innovative risk, but there are some parts of the myth that the tech bros are overlooking.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
-
D’Angelo could become a patron saint for this ethos.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
18 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Trust comes not from claiming perfection but from demonstrating integrity.—
Prof. Dr. med. Mazda Farshad,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Mental health experts suggest that hands-on hobbies like knitting, puzzle-making, and baking foster mindfulness and reduce anxiety by activating our senses, grounding us in the moment, and shifting focus from perfection to process.—
Alesandra Dubin,
Southern Living,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
One example of such smaller space weather events is a magnetic flux rope—bundles of magnetic fields wrapped around each other like a rope.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
24 Oct. 2025
-
One of the most famous examples of a major business leader succeeding from failure was Apple’s visionary cofounder Steve Jobs.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
This cul-de-sac at the end of civilization feels like a physical manifestation of the loneliness Carol radiates even before the cataclysmic incident.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Given the disease’s wide range of trajectories and manifestations—from mild and manageable to severely disabling—some now regard it as a group of diseases, rather than a single one.—
Lucinda Rosenfeld,
New Yorker,
25 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Beau ideal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beau%20ideal. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share