it is the fundamental essence of the thing, the highest most concentrated, the best quality by far
No the word quintessential is not a noun. It is an adjective.
It means that something is exactly what you would expect from an American or American language. That something defines what American is.
Quintessential Vocal Ensemble was created in 1993.
The quintessential ingredient in cake is flour.
Her comportment throughout the ordeal displayed a quintessential bravery.
"Quintessential" is an adjective that describes the perfect example of a particular type, The quintessential quarterback would be one who has all of the traits and qualities those who are knowledgeable about football would expect from a quarterback. There are quintessential villains and heroes. It could be that "quintessential" is generally used to describe people, but that may not be necessarily true.
It is of utmost importance to understand what plagiarism is when attempting to provide the quintessential answer.
That photograph caught a quintessential moment in our nation's hsitory.
Beyond our solar system, the heavens are made up of only quintessential elements.
maybe, maybe not
typical
Something that is quintessential is representative of everything in its field, or contains elements common to all. In the case of Charles Dickens, his books are quintessential because the characters and the themes are those that all types of people can relate to. They are the essence of story telling because they have such a strong commonality and speak to so many people.