venerable

adjective ven·er·a·ble \ ˈve-nər(-ə)-bəl , ˈven-rə-bəl \

|Updated on: 12 Aug 2018

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Examples: venerable in a Sentence

Definition of venerable

1 a : calling forth respect through age, character, and attainments

a venerable jazz musician

; broadly : conveying an impression of aged goodness and benevolence

encouraged by the venerable doctor's head-nodding

b : impressive by reason of age

under venerable pines

2 : deserving to be venerated —used as a title for an Anglican archdeacon or for a Roman Catholic who has been accorded the lowest of three degrees of recognition for sanctity

3 : made sacred especially by religious or historical association

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venerability

play \ˌve-nə-rə-ˈbi-lə-tē, ˌven-rə-\ noun

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venerableness

play \ˈve-nər(-ə)-bəl-nəs, ˈven-rə-\ noun

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venerably

play \ˈve-nər(-ə)-blē, ˈven-rə-\ adverb

See venerable defined for English-language learners

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Examples of venerable in a Sentence

[Julie] Powell never met Julia Child (who died last year), but the venerable chef's spirit is present throughout, and Powell imaginatively reconstructs episodes from Child's life in the 1940s. Her writing is feisty and unrestrained, especially as she details killing lobsters, tackling marrowbones and cooking late into the night. —Publishers Weekly, 13 June 2005
Under her stewardship, the onetime boardinghouse came to be heralded as the South's most venerable family restaurant, a reliquary of old-fashioned cooking—collard greens enriched with fatback, creamed corn straight from the cob, fried chicken with a pepper-flecked crust—where the tables groaned beneath the weight of a quintessential midday repast, and history stood still on the plate for all to admire. —John T. Edge, Gourmet, January 2003
The lower the P/E, as a rough rule of thumb, the cheaper the stock. Though this guide to value has lots of exceptions, it remains a venerable market benchmark. —Jonathan Weil, Wall Street Journal, 21 Aug. 2001
I then descended to the Courts of justice, over which the judges, those venerable sages and interpreters of the law, presided, for determining the disputed rights and properties of men, as well as for the punishment of vice, and protection of innocence. —Jonathan Swift, Gulliver's Travels, 1726
the venerable old man was a cherished source of advice and wisdom for the villagers
a venerable tradition that colleges have been maintaining for centuries

Recent Examples of venerable from the Web

For those lucky enough to see her, the woman in the Victorian-era frock materializes at the same spot in the venerable sandstone building — the far, dark end of a long hallway.

— maria l. la ganga, idahostatesman, "What’s behind ’60s-era paneling at El Korah Shrine? A ballroom’s worth of ’20s art.," 12 July 2018
And on Monday, the venerable Herbert Blomstedt is joined by young conductors in a program of Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms.

— New York Times, "6 Classical Music Concerts to See in N.Y.C. This Weekend," 12 July 2018
Found at restaurants owned by venerable chefs like Thomas Keller, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Dominique Crenn, and Daniel Humm, Australian black truffles are harvested from June to August, providing fresh tubers when Europe isn’t able to.

— christina liao, Vogue, "Why You Should Be Going to Australia for Fresh Black Truffles," 12 July 2018
The venerable resort is owned by the state’s Republican governor, presidential ally Jim Justice.

— jill colvin, The Seattle Times, "Trump praises service members during charity dinner in W.Va.," 3 July 2018
Prime developers of the Soyuz spacecraft, RKK Energia, tabled plans for flying its historic but venerable three-seater as close as 90 kilometers from the Moon at the turn of the 21st century.

— anatoly zak, Popular Mechanics, "Russia's Soyuz Spacecraft Could Find New Life as a Lunar Taxi," 6 July 2018
Palmer teaches at the Berklee School of Music and leads the house band and weekly gig at venerable Boston club Wally’s Jazz Cafe.

— john adamian, courant.com, "Tedeschi Trucks And Jay Critch Are Just Two Of This Week's Must-See Shows," 2 July 2018
The 25-year-old from venerable Dutch club Ajax has been touted as a potential breakout player in Russia.

— jonathan tannenwald, Philly.com, "World Cup schedule for June 15: Salah vs. Suarez, Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Spain," 14 June 2018
His preaching style draws on the long and venerable tradition of black preachers dating to the days of slavery.

— randall balmer, Washington Post, "‘Love is the only way’: How a black preacher’s royal wedding address showed the power of a good sermon," 21 May 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of venerable

Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin venerābilis "entitled to respect," from venerārī "to solicit the good will of (a deity), hold in awe, venerate" + -bilis "capable of (acting or being acted upon) — more at -able

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 2

See Words from the same year

venerable Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of venerable

old, ancient, venerable, antique, antiquated, archaic, obsolete mean having come into existence or use in the more or less distant past. old may apply to either actual or merely relative length of existence.