Great White Father
Americannoun
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the president of the U.S.
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any man who holds a position of great authority.
Etymology
Origin of Great White Father
An Americanism dating back to 1915–20; after the epithet supposedly used for the U.S. president by American Indians in the 19th century
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.
Maraniss states that he was a victim of the harmful myth “that the Great White Father knows best.”
From Washington Post • Aug. 12, 2022
Generally he showed his wisdom by keeping on good terms with the Great White Father.
From Time Magazine Archive
Congressmen once more hungered for Federal aid and Franklin Roosevelt resumed the prestige cf the Great White Father to whom all must appeal.
From Time Magazine Archive
Tigua Indians made the Great White Father an honorary chieftain of their tribe, gave him a peacock-feathered headdress, deerskin moccasins.
From Time Magazine Archive
"The real Great White Father wears a red coat, and is friend to the Pottawattomie," he said with dignity.
From When Wilderness Was King A Tale of the Illinois Country by Parrish, Randall
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.
