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elder statesman

noun

an influential citizen, often a retired high official, whose advice is sought by government leaders.
any influential member of a company, group, etc., whose advice is respected.
Japanese History. any of the political leaders who retired from official office but continued to exert a strong influence in the government and who controlled the emperor's privy council, especially in the period 1898–1914.

elder statesman

noun

an old, experienced, and eminent person, esp a politician, whose advice is often sought

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Word History and Origins

Origin of elder statesman¹

First recorded in 1900–05

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Herbie Hancock, who at 85 years young is one of the elder statesmen and authorities of jazz, says jazz is a spirit.

From

David Hogg, 25, a gun safety organiser and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, is currently locked in a heated public debate with a party elder statesmen, strategist James Carville.

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At Chapter One, Lira, with more than a decade on the job, has become the restaurant’s elder statesman.

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He’s earned the right to carry himself as one of cinema’s elder statesmen.

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He became one of the pillars of New York’s downtown theater scene, an elder statesman in the 1990s and 2000s who remained miles ahead of those younger innovators galvanized by his example.

From

elderly elder stateswoman

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