as in dowager
a dignified usually elderly woman of some rank or authority
the city's grandes dames still hold considerable sway in its cultural life
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Recent Examples of grande dame
What about an Adele-style grande dame?
—
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
Petal-pink, with white wrought-iron balconies overlooking the sea, the Liberty-style grande dame has been a Portofino coast landmark since 1904.
—Gina Decaprio Vercesi, Travel + Leisure, 13 Mar. 2025
Gaga is thirty-eight now—a grande dame in pop years.
—Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 12 Mar. 2025
Marking the 50th year of the awards ceremony that celebrates the best of the best in French film, the ceremony will be presided over by none other than the grande dame of French cinema, Catherine Deneuve, while Julia Roberts has been announced as an honorary César Award recipient.
—Isabelle Kliger, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for grande dame
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
Petal-pink, with white wrought-iron balconies overlooking the sea, the Liberty-style grande dame has been a Portofino coast landmark since 1904.
—Gina Decaprio Vercesi, Travel + Leisure, 13 Mar. 2025
Gaga is thirty-eight now—a grande dame in pop years.
—Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 12 Mar. 2025
Marking the 50th year of the awards ceremony that celebrates the best of the best in French film, the ceremony will be presided over by none other than the grande dame of French cinema, Catherine Deneuve, while Julia Roberts has been announced as an honorary César Award recipient.
—Isabelle Kliger, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for grande dame
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grande dame
Noun
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The empress dowager’s legacy Empress Dowager Ling was largely unsuccessful in her bid for power.—
Stephanie Balkwill,
The Conversation,
17 Mar. 2025
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Playing an acid-tongue dowager or master teacher of witchcraft came naturally to her, but what thrilled her about acting was its transformative freedom.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Sep. 2024
Noun
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But this season, showrunner Mike White pinpoints the willful decadence of the Western world, primarily through Yankees: the husband, wife, and 2.5 children of the Ratliff family, three freewheeling feminist matrons, plus a shady white bachelor and a single black mother.—
Armond White,
National Review,
9 Apr. 2025
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Unexpectedly, a character who seemed to be a stock figure — the dowdy matron, clucking over the girls in her charge — emerges as someone much richer and better, raising the show along with her.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
20 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Grande dame.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grande%20dame. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
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