matron

[mey-truh n]

See more synonyms for matron on Thesaurus.com

noun

a married woman, especially one who is mature and staid or dignified and has an established social position.
a woman who has charge of the domestic affairs of a hospital, prison, or other institution.
a woman serving as a guard, warden, or attendant for women or girls, as in a prison.

Origin of matron

1350–1400; Middle English matrone < Latin mātrōna a married woman, wife, derivative of māter mother

Related formsma·tron·al

[mey-truh-nl, ma-] /ˈmeɪ trə nl, ˈmæ-/, adjectivema·tron·hood, ma·tron·ship, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for matron

dowager, housekeeper, matriarch, biddy, administrator, superintendent, wife, mother, lady, dame, housemother

Examples from the Web for matron

Contemporary Examples of matron

Ted Lindsay, Reggie Sinclair, and Marty Pavelich of the Red Wings, were ushers, and Ted's wife, Pat, was matron of honor.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse
W.C. Heinz
May 31, 2014
He asked why it was that Saldanha "was placed in a position in a matron office to be receiving calls from outside agencies".
Kate Suicide Nurse's Family Tell of "Terrible Grief"
Tom Sykes
March 26, 2013

Historical Examples of matron

That matron, like most Grecian women, was ignorant of her own written language.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
Never ought so worthy, so valuable a matron to be lost to the world.
Gomez Arias
Joaqun Telesforo de Trueba y Coso
She reported to the matron that Mary was not neat and quarrelled all the time.
Chit-Chat; Nirvana; The Searchlight
Mathew Joseph Holt
And the matron—not Miss Coffin, but the other one—called me 'Maggie.'
Thankful's Inheritance
Joseph C. Lincoln
Then Sister Allworthy whispered to the matron, who said, "Bring her in."
The Christian
Hall Caine

British Dictionary definitions for matron

matron

noun

a married woman regarded as staid or dignified, esp a middle-aged woman with children
a woman in charge of the domestic or medical arrangements in an institution, such as a boarding school
US a wardress in a prison
British the former name for the administrative head of the nursing staff in a hospitalOfficial name: nursing officer

Derived Formsmatronal, adjectivematronhood or matronship, nounmatron-like, adjective

Word Origin for matron

C14: via Old French from Latin mātrōna, from māter mother

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for matron

late 14c., "married woman" (usually one of rank), from Old French matrone "married woman; elderly lady; patroness; midwife," and directly from Latin matrona "married woman, wife, matron," from mater (genitive matris) "mother" (see mother (n.1)). Sense of "female manager of a school, hospital, etc." first recorded 1550s.