elder statesman

noun

1. an influential citizen, often a retired high official, whose advice is sought by government leaders.

2. any influential member of a company, group, etc., whose advice is respected.

3. 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

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of elder statesman¹

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

Gretzky had scored at a devastating clip for an absurdly long time—20 NHL seasons that saw him turn from a wiry 18-year-old into the league’s elder statesman.

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Young from two feet closer, drained his and the youngest man on the US team had beaten Europe's elder statesman. 12-6.

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The question now is whether he, as one of the country’s elder statesmen, will boldly stand up in defense of democracy, or let himself be symbolically pilloried — or worse.

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Guided by his wife, Sharon, who was his manager and steadying force, Osbourne reinvented himself in the 1990s as an elder statesman of heavy metal.

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Athletics elder statesman, Sir Brendan Foster, will spearhead a campaign to get millions walking or running regularly.

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