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emerita

American  
[ih-mer-i-tuh] / ɪˈmɛr ɪ tə /

adjective

  1. (of a woman) retired or honorably discharged from active professional duty, but retaining the title of one's office or position.

    Kate Johnson, Professor Emerita of Music.


noun

emeritae plural
  1. a woman with such status.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of emerita

< Latin, feminine of ēmeritus emeritus

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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:

"Right away, I knew it was something really special," says Voight, curator emerita of invertebrates at the Field Museum in Chicago and the lead author of the study describing the new species.

From Science Daily May 25, 2026

“Every generation feels like all of a sudden food is becoming an enormously prominent issue like it never was before,” says the 89-year-old nutritionist and New York University professor emerita.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 10, 2026

While some cardinals will think the most important part is following divine guidance, others will have anxiety over making a quick decision, says Tina Beattie, professor emerita of Catholic studies at the University of Roehampton.

From BBC May 1, 2025

She chose choreographer Robert Battle as her successor and served as the company’s artistic director emerita until her death.

From Los Angeles Times Nov. 11, 2024

No sooner had the "lady," as Byron was pleased to call her, played her part as decoy, than she was discharged as emerita.

From The Works of Lord Byron. Vol. 3 by Coleridge, Ernest Hartley

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