PAST MASTER Synonyms: 57 Similar and Opposite Words

past master

noun

Definition of past master

as in expert

a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field a movie director who was widely regarded as the past master of suspense

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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 past master There is a certainty to her sentences that sets her alongside past masters (your William Trevors, your Anton Chekhovs) and a singular beauty to her observations. — Tomi Obaro, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2024 And he is positioned as the chief foreign luminary at the festival’s anniversary tribute to past master Ozu Yasujiro. — Mark Schilling, Variety, 23 Oct. 2023 The fact that the company is designing a standalone robotaxi speaks to its failures in executing past master plans. — Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 28 Feb. 2023 Does this past master of starting crazes see the Reddit phenomenon as a long-overdue democratization of the stock market, or a frenzy detached from the fundamentals of investing? — Shawn Tully, Fortune, 22 Mar. 2021 Wonder, a past master of love songs, makes a demand that tests the output of every contemporary pop singer and every jaded fan. — Armond White, National Review, 25 Nov. 2020 When the ensemble made its first national tour, playing Orchestra Hall in September 1992, Marsalis and friends were trying to show that America needed a world-class jazz orchestra that could honor past masters while forging future ones. — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 16 Nov. 2019

Recent Examples of Synonyms for past master

Noun

Several outside experts agreed with him, calling the methods state-of-the-art.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
Legal experts have echoed those concerns, noting that relying on the NVRA’s general preamble language to halt state election certification lacks precedent.

— Hugh Son, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of expert

Noun

No one gets out of this world without becoming a master of the art of losing, to invoke the poet Elizabeth Bishop.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Supporting this remarkable local treasure offers a rare chance to experience authentic culinary artistry from a true master.

— Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of master

Noun

The scholar Colin Burrow, discussing Helen Vendler recently, described the goal of criticism as telling other people how good something is.

— Lola Seaton, The New York Review of Books, 17 Oct. 2026
Sabrina came from a high-status family of scholars, and Phillip, the struggling musician and child of butchers, wasn’t enough for her family.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of scholar

Noun

Still, the question of what Ebel was doing with his adepts swept through Prussia, dominating the newspapers that had only recently begun to emerge from their eighteenth-century chronicling of obligations to a more modern publicizing role.

— Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
Lest things get predictable, Tasjan’s adept at letting the music battle with the lyrics in a way that hints at how any experience is far more complex than we are led to believe.

— Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 17 July 2026

Definition of adept

Noun

Composer and piano virtuoso Clara Schumann, whose influence on 19th-century classical music is impossible to quantify.

— Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026
John Mayer is launching his own record label, Sob Rock Records, the singer-songwriter and guitar virtuoso confirmed Thursday, partnering with Universal Music Group’s Mercury Records for the new venture.

— Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of virtuoso

Noun

The holiday campaign, created by advertising guru David Lipman, showcases natural diamond jewelry and fine jewelry, and is centered around model Jasmine Tookes and her husband, Juan David Borrero.

— David Moin, Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2026
After receiving rave reviews for his chilling portrayal of OpenAI guru Sam Altman, Andrew Garfield is headed towards a busy awards season and that now includes a prestigious new honor.

— Pete Hammond, Deadline, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of guru

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pastings

past master

past masters

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“Past master.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/past%20master. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of past master

noun

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