From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishjeweljew‧el /ˈdʒuːəl/ ●●○ noun [countable] 1 DCJa valuable stone, such as a diamond SYN gem2 → jewels3 TMCa very small stone used in the machinery of a watch4 BESTLIKE somebody OR somethingsomething or someone that is very valuable, attractive, or important He introduced her to Budapest, a jewel of a city.5 → the jewel in the crownTHESAURUSjewel a valuable stone, such as a diamondHe had a large fortune in gold and jewels.the crown jewels (=the crown and other valuable objects worn by the king or queen on important royal occasions)a jewel thiefprecious stone a rare and valuable jewel such as a diamond or an emeraldThe handle of the sword was decorated with precious stones.gem (also gemstone) a jewel that has been cut into a special shapeThe cross had large red gems set into it.Her eyes were shining like gemstones.semi-precious stone a valuable stone, but one that is not as rare or valuable as a diamond, ruby, emerald etcLapis lazuli is a semi-precious stone that was often used by the ancient Egyptians.solitaire technical a single jewel, especially a large diamonda gold ring with a diamond solitaire
Examples from the Corpus
jewel• He assessed her as if he was looking for flaws in a jewel.• They compared jewels from the various swords and wondered why some knights had better jewels than others.• It had very few jewels in its crown.• His eyes burned like red jewels.Origin jewel (1200-1300) Old French juel, from jeu “game, play” 