1425–75; late Middle English < Middle French < Medieval Latin confrāter colleague, equivalent to Latin con- con- + frāter brother
A confrere is not quite the same as a buddy. It's a fellow worker, a member of your professional group or an esteemed peer. Think of the noun confrere as a very French sounding way to say "colleague." In fact, frere means "brother" in French, so a confrere is like someone who's a part of your professional brotherhood. Except these days that brotherhood has been expanded to include all of the working women of the world.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“They have insinuated infamy on the integrity of my priestly life, having financed witnesses in a trial against a confrere, even being the owner of oil wells or tax havens.”
From Seattle Times • Mar. 17, 2022
In the crowd were the actors Tony Danza, Tony Lo Bianco and Jelani Remy; Monty Alexander, a jazz pianist; and Deana Martin, an entertainer and daughter of the Sinatra confrere Dean Martin.
From New York Times • Sep. 25, 2019
In Owen, Casey has found a willing confrere.
From New York Times • Mar. 7, 2014
Mark Temple started the game with Oregon's first touchdown, passed to a confrere named Gee for the second, kicked both extra points.
From Time Magazine Archive
He would soon be recognized by scientific men all over the world as their confrere, especially after his year's study at Oxford.
From Frances Waldeaux by Davis, Rebecca Harding
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.
