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materfamilias

noun

Definition of materfamiliasnext
as in matriarch

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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 materfamilias The novel recounts the history and hardships of the Binewski clan, carnival folk whose pater- and materfamilias, Al and Crystal Lil, create their own freak show. — Elizabeth Hand, Washington Post, 11 Nov. 2022 But with tact and humanity, this materfamilias has still calmed the waters. — Boyd Van Hoeij, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Oct. 2019 Though the Roundabout production, which opened on Tuesday evening, stars Elizabeth McGovern as the materfamilias, the story really is Kay’s. — Jesse Green, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for materfamilias
  1. matriarch
  2. matron
  3. stepmother
  4. mom
  5. mama
Noun
  • His first project at the house was a film starring Demi Moore that imagined Gucci as a family business owned by a wealthy matriarch in California.
    — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 26 Sep. 2026
  • The pic has Lange playing the emotionally troubled and addiction-plagued matriarch Mary Tyrone.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of matriarch
Noun
  • The driver and bus matron apparently bypassed the daycare location and mistakenly dropped Ka'Mylah somewhere in between, and the child navigated her way home on her own.
    — Carolyn Gusoff, CBS News, 14 Sep. 2026
  • An extremely unattractive teenage girl who resembled a forty-year-old matron in a women’s prison rather than a young woman fresh on the road to self-discovery approached me.
    — Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of matron
Noun
  • Season 4 of the horror series is a retelling of the life of Lizzie Borden, a Massachusetts woman accused of murdering her father and stepmother with an ax in the 1800s.
    — Yamillah Hurtado, PEOPLE, 25 Sep. 2026
  • The report claimed prosecutors had 25 new witnesses, some of whom had allegedly seen a hooded Lizzie at the window of the guest room where her stepmother Abby’s body was found.
    — Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of stepmother
Noun
  • Ronika evolves as the scene shifts to Blair’s home (which confusingly has the same layout as Zoe’s house in Michael Kramer’s eye-catching scenic design) for the home funeral of their TV mom.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
  • How protecting his mom created the 'Squatter Hunter' Shelton says none of this started as a business idea.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of mom
Noun
  • Hall’s recipe uses a classic combination of stone-ground grits, milk, water, and salt, but the Nashville native’s cooking technique may be different than the one your mama taught you.
    — Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 23 Sep. 2026
  • But with Earle coming into the ring with fighting words, who says a mama bear can’t bite back?
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of mama

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Cite this Entry

“Materfamilias.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/materfamilias. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

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