mentor
noun
a wise and trusted counselor or teacher.
mentor
1 American
[men-tawr, -ter]
/ ˈmɛn tɔr, -tər /
Mentor
2
American
[men-ter]
/ ˈmɛn tər /
noun
Mentor
3
American
[men-tawr, -ter]
/ ˈmɛn tɔr, -tər /
noun
mentor
1
British
/ ˈmɛntɔː /
noun
verb
Mentor
2
British
/ ˈmɛntɔː /
noun
Usage
What does mentor mean? A mentor is the main person you rely on to give you advice and guidance, especially in your career. Mentor can also be used as a verb meaning to act as a mentor, as in I mentor two of my students. If you have a mentor, you are the mentee. Example: It feels strange to me that I’m now more famous than my mentor—I wouldn’t be where I am without her.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of mentor
First recorded in 1740–50; after Mentor (from Greek Méntōr )
Explanation
A mentor is a person who trains and guides someone, like the second-grade English teacher who saw the spark of creativity in your writing and encouraged you to become a professional author. The original Mentor was a character in Homer's epic poem The Odyssey; Mentor looked after Odysseus's family, particularly his son Telemachus, while Odysseus was off fighting in the Trojan War. Today the word is used to describe any person who acts as an advisor or teacher. As a noun, mentor describes the coach who taught you to play baseball. As a verb, mentor is what the coach does to help you improve your swing.
Vocabulary lists containing mentor
The Hunger Games
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Monster
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You Name It: Eponyms
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
There had been some speculation that Takaichi, a regular visitor before becoming prime minister in October, might attend the shrine like then-premier Shinzo Abe, her mentor, had done in 2013.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
But Maresca, despite clearly being inspired by his former mentor, has his own style and one which we have started to see emerge across City's pre-season.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Banderas provides his mentor figure with a delightful vigor, but Johnson can’t quite figure out what to do with him, or how to make Chef feel like a real person.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
In an age when only a very small percentage of young people go into military service, Tony experiences something like boot camp, complete with a stern but wise mentor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
His mentor had spent years molding him into the strongest possible candidate for the Sons of the Six; now it was all wasted.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
In November 1832, eight survivors of the sunken American whaleship Mentor set out into the Pacific Ocean in a pair of rickety boats.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
After taking on water and supplies, the Mentor set a course for Guam in the Pacific.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
The Mentor had set sail from New Bedford, Mass., the whaling capital of the United States, in July 1831, with a complement of 21 men led by Capt. Edward Barnard.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
Josephine Markham Webster, the boss of Mentor Models agency in Sheffield, was of those to voice anger at the time, and thinks AI generated models are a step backward for the industry.
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2024
He saw that Leader, too, was noticing something about Mentor and was puzzled.
From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry
For a dual-sport athlete with big dreams like Pleasant, having mentors in his two brothers to lean on and gain advice from was everything he ever needed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
He also noted that smaller institutions can provide students with direct access to faculty mentors and hands-on field research.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026
Ramsay-Peaty is also facing increasing pressure from Filip Nowacki, the 18-year-old from Jersey he mentors.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
In a moment when Black Americans’ voting rights seem under threat, state Rep. Angie Nixon, D-Fla., finds herself aiming to follow in the footsteps of her ancestors and mentors.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
The victors, both this year’s tributes and their mentors, are standing around in small groups, talking.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
