A-list

See also: alist and A list

English

WOTD – 1 February 2025

Etymology

The noun is derived from A (“rank (normally the highest) on a scale that assigns letters”) +‎ list. The adjective is from an attributive use of the noun.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈeɪlɪst/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈeɪˌlɪst/

Noun

A-list (plural A-lists)

1. The first of a number of lists, especially lists arranged in order of importance or preference.
3. (originally and chiefly US) An informal list of people (especially in the entertainment industry, or professionally or socially prominent) who are the most admired or desirable, or likely to bring success.

   Antonym: Z-list

   Coordinate terms: B-list, C-list, D-list

   • 2014 January 21, Hermione Hoby, “Julia Roberts interview for August: Osage County – ‘I might actually go to hell for this…’”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review section)‎^[1], London: Telegraph Media Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-10-07:

     The film [Pretty Woman] grossed $464 million worldwide, ensconcing her [Julia Roberts] in the Hollywood A-list.

Alternative forms

• A list

Derived terms

• A-gay
• A-lister

Related terms

• A1
• A team
• backlist
• frontlist
• midlist

Translations

first of a number of lists

• Finnish: A-lista, ensimmäinen lista
• Macedonian: please add this translation if you can

informal list of people who are the most admired or desirable, or likely to bring success

• Finnish: huippujulkkikset pl
• Macedonian: please add this translation if you can

See also

• best of the bunch
• cream of the crop
• crème de la crème
• pick of the litter

Adjective

A-list (not comparable)

1. (originally and chiefly US) Of or relating, or belonging, to an A-list (noun sense 2).

   Antonym: Z-list

   Coordinate terms: B-list, C-list, D-list

   • 2021 September 15, Laura Martin, “How Talent Shows Became TV’s Most Bizarre Programmes”, in BBC Online‎^[2], archived from the original on 2023-04-18:

     By the 1980s, there was still huge appeal for what became known as 'shiny-floor' talent shows, especially during weekend primetime. In the US, Star Search ran for 12 years in its original run, from 1983 to 1995, and as searches went, it did genuinely uncover some A-list talent, including Destiny's Child, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Alanis Morrisette and LeAnn Rimes.

   • 2023 October 6, Ryan Gilbey, “The double life of Rock Hudson: ‘Let’s be frank, he was a horndog!’”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian‎^[3], London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2025-01-18:

     Before his [Rock Hudson's] Aids diagnosis, he had been so many other things: A-list hunk, suave romcom star and all-round Mr America.

2. (by extension) Best of a group; first-class, pre-eminent, top.

   Synonyms: best of the best, top-class

   • 2007 winter, Steve Klett, “Release Notes: The Winds of Change”, in Steve Klett, editor, Maximum PC, San Francisco, Calif.: Future US, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 3, column 1:

     DirectX 10 promises an almost obscene step up in the level of eye candy you can expect from an A-list game, which is the great news. The bad news is, you'll need a new videocard to get those gorgeous graphics.

Translations

of or relating, or belonging, to an A-list

• Finnish: huippu-
• Macedonian: please add this translation if you can

best of a group — see first class,‎ preeminent,‎ top

Further reading

• A-list on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief, William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002), “A-list”, in The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles, 5th edition, Oxford, New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 1.

Anagrams

• Itals, tails, Laits, itals, ATLIs, talis, silat, laits, Laist, litas, stail, Talsi, Latis