Definition of DOYEN

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English picked up "doyen" from French in the 17th century. The French term in turn comes from the Late Latin word decanus, which itself comes from the Greek dekanos, meaning "chief of ten." A "doyen" can be a leader of a group, such as a diplomatic corps. In this regard, the word has been used to refer to someone who is specifically or tacitly allowed to speak for that group. More broadly, a "doyen" refers to a highly skilled and respected veteran of a particular field. The feminine form of "doyen" is "doyenne."

Examples of doyen in a Sentence

He is considered the doyen of political journalists. considered the doyen of American art critics

Recent Examples on the Web

The doyens of the European Union are also breathing a sigh of relief after Mattarella's intervention. — Tim Lister, CNN, "Italy's populists are blocked as 'political referee' waves the red card," 28 May 2018 Wolfe, who died Monday at age 88, was known as a dandified doyen of the New Journalism, a reporter who embedded with hippies and race car drivers and astronauts, and later as a grandiose novelist. — Jeet Heer, The New Republic, "Tom Wolfe reunited journalism with literature.," 15 May 2018 The doyen of Labour’s energy policy is not Clement Attlee, the prime minister who nationalised Britain’s fractured array of public and private energy suppliers. — The Economist, "Robin Hood Energy, the company bringing power to the people," 3 May 2018 The fashion doyen returns the favor, dominating the film with his sheer force of personality. — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, "'The Gospel According to Andre': Film Review | Tribeca 2018," 27 Apr. 2018 Six years later, Douthat, a columnist for this newspaper, has become the successor to the conservative Catholic doyen William F. Buckley Jr. (who once took him sailing — and skinny-dipping — on Long Island Sound). — Paul Elie, New York Times, "A Conservative Catholic Begs the Pope: Lead Us Not Into Temptation," 9 Apr. 2018 Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified Andrei Kolesnikov as a former doyen of the Kremlin press pool. — Newsweek, "Russia's Ukrainian Retreat," 8 June 2015 Trump and Leo built an unlikely alliance that would benefit both the politician and the legal doyen. — Tessa Berenson, Time, "Inside Trump's Plan to Dramatically Reshape U.S. Courts," 8 Feb. 2018 Kositza has become the face and voice of the publishing house, reviewing books and promoting Antaios’s new releases on her YouTube channel, while Kubitschek is one of its ideological doyens. — Sumi Somaskanda, The Atlantic, "A New, New Right Rises in Germany," 22 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'doyen.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.