Thesaurus results for MATRIARCH

matriarch

noun

ˈmā-trē-ˌärk

as in dowager

a dignified usually elderly woman of some rank or authority even though she was 87, the matriarch of the family knew everything that was going on

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of matriarch In MobLand, Mirren plays Maeve Harrigan, matriarch of the Harrigan crime family, married to Pierce Brosnan’s Conrad. —

Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 13 June 2026 Costarring are Nia Long as Jackson matriarch Katherine, Miles Teller as lawyer-manager John Branca, Laura Harrier as producer Suzanne de Passe and Mike Myers as CBS Records exec Walter Yetnikoff. —

Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 12 June 2026 Patricia Richardson, who played the matriarch Jill Taylor, has indicated a willingness to return to the role. —

Joe Otterson, Variety, 12 June 2026 Within its relatively short life span, Miss Shirley's has become a neighborhood staple bustling every night of the week (except Tuesdays), with matriarch and dumpling queen Shirley Lee there to welcome customers with a smile. —

Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 8 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for matriarch

Recent Examples of Synonyms for matriarch

Noun

The show’s underpinned by the differences in character and country of Lady Cora and her formidable mother-in-law, the dowager Countess Violet Crawley, played by the equally formidable and much missed Dame Maggie Smith.

— Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 22 July 2025
The empress dowager’s legacy Empress Dowager Ling was largely unsuccessful in her bid for power.

— Stephanie Balkwill, The Conversation, 17 Mar. 2025