the highest level in rank, excellence, or importance:
a musician strictly out of the top drawer.
Origin
1900-05
Related forms
top-drawer, adjective
Examples from the web for top drawer
He then reached into the drawer and began taking the money out of the top drawer.
Detailed lists, kept in the top drawer of each map case, tell you what maps are available and which drawers contain them.
The minutes are open for public review and are kept in the top drawer of a file cabinet on the right as you enter my office.
During the observation, two unlabeled medication cups were noted in the top drawer of the medication cart.
We really knew that he was top drawer as far as any of us were concerned.
The label shall be mounted on the cabinet frame above or to the left side of the top drawer.
The revolver was found ia the top drawer of the bureau, with the cartridges removed.
The shelf shall contain a rollout flip-top drawer for storage of wiring diagrams and manuals.
British Dictionary definitions for top drawer
top drawer
noun
1.
people of the highest standing, esp socially (esp in the phrase out of the top drawer)
Idioms and Phrases with top drawer
top drawer
Of the highest quality, importance, or rank, as in The musicians in this pick-up orchestra were top drawer. It probably alludes to the uppermost drawer in a bureau or chest, where the most valuable objects (such as jewelry) are usually kept. [ c. 1900 ]