as in deans
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 statesmen
The Rangers need another strong campaign from the two elder statesmen on the starting staff.
—
Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas Morning News, 23 Mar. 2026
The franchise’s elder statesmen understand that Jokic is an inextricable aspect of any conversation about Murray’s developing legacy.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Yet the overriding feeling of Light-Years is of two elder statesmen who still have gifts to share.
—Mosi Reeves, Rolling Stone, 13 Dec. 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
Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas Morning News, 23 Mar. 2026
The franchise’s elder statesmen understand that Jokic is an inextricable aspect of any conversation about Murray’s developing legacy.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Yet the overriding feeling of Light-Years is of two elder statesmen who still have gifts to share.
—Mosi Reeves, Rolling Stone, 13 Dec. 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elder statesmen
Noun
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Possibly this was the case at élite law schools in the nineteen-nineties, where even the most obdurate deans could not afford to ignore their militant students indefinitely.—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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Many move around the country, going from deans to vice presidents, and on to president, and by that time they are conditioned to stay within the traditional behaviors of corporate expectations, where regularity is valued, and disruption is thought to create corporate liability.—
Matthew G. Andersson,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
Noun
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So did the signature crispy thin crust and the accommodating nature of Serio’s elders.—
Donna Vickroy,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
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Teenagers are more inclined than their elders to get news from nontraditional sources such as social media and influencers, heralding a generational shift in how people seek out information.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Silberman is one of South Florida’s oldest living World War II veterans, having served as a communications and decoding officer aboard the battleship USS Arkansas in the Pacific.—
Milena Malaver,
Miami Herald,
2 May 2026
-
Vegas is another experienced playoff team loaded with veterans.—
Greg Beacham,
Los Angeles Times,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Elder statesmen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elder%20statesmen. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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