as in dean
the senior member of a group
the elder statesman of the White House correspondents is finally retiring after nearly a half century of service
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Recent Examples of elder statesman
The band received some oddball counsel from elder statesmen of the scene.
—
Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
The game’s elder statesman Of course, 29 is much older than 21 — especially in college hoops.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2025
On a day when the last remaining Israeli hostages returned home after two years in captivity, and both Israelis and Palestinians celebrated the end of the Israel-Hamas war, many of America's elder statesmen and stateswomen kept mum.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 13 Oct. 2025
Hamlin is the uber-talented and equally opinionated elder statesman of the NASCAR Cup Series.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for elder statesman
Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
The game’s elder statesman Of course, 29 is much older than 21 — especially in college hoops.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2025
On a day when the last remaining Israeli hostages returned home after two years in captivity, and both Israelis and Palestinians celebrated the end of the Israel-Hamas war, many of America's elder statesmen and stateswomen kept mum.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 13 Oct. 2025
Hamlin is the uber-talented and equally opinionated elder statesman of the NASCAR Cup Series.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for elder statesman
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elder statesman
Noun
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Trump’s tariffs have pushed Canada and China to look for opportunities to strengthen international cooperation, said Zhu Feng, the dean of the School of International Studies at China’s Nanjing University.—
Ken Moritsugu,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Jan. 2026
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Nancy La Vigne, dean of the Rutgers-Newark School of Criminal Justice, noted that VR could help inmates practice real-world interactions, including navigating public transportation.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Harbaugh is also known to love the idea of working for John Mara, a popular league elder known for his common decency.—
Ian O'Connor,
New York Times,
13 Jan. 2026
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Saikat Choudhury’s detailed graphite drawings honor connections between youth and elders, bridge cultural traditions, and acknowledge the disparity in belonging as well.—
Diana Argabrite,
Mercury News,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The coalition’s duties include advising city staff on veteran issues, selecting the annual Veteran of the Year and contributing to the maintenance of the city’s veterans memorial.—
Linda Mcintosh,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Jan. 2026
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Derrick Merrin, her 2024 challenger, is launching a rematch, and Air Force veteran Alea Nadeem is also vying for the Republican nomination.—
Rachel Schilke,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Elder statesman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elder%20statesman. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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