1. One who cuts, polishes, or engraves gems.
2. A dealer in precious or semiprecious stones.

1. Of or relating to precious stones or the art of working with them.
2. 1. Engraved in stone.
   2. Marked by conciseness, precision, or refinement of expression: lapidary prose.
   3. Sharply or finely delineated: a face with lapidary features.

[Middle English lapidarie, from Old French lapidaire, from Latin lapidārius, from lapis, lapid-, stone.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.