matryoshka
Britishnoun
Etymology
Origin of matryoshka
C20: from Russian matreshka mother, highly respected lady
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.
Nearby, a group of wooden "matryoshka" dolls, in traditional Russian dress with rosy cheeks, stood on one shelf, gleaming across from brightly painted Soviet tin cars.
From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2025
Described in the wall text as a “living matryoshka doll,” the collection of eight pieces shown on one model distills the V&R poetics: a powerful idea, a performance-oriented presentation, a sense of wonder.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2025
Rubio was given a Russian matryoshka doll while Prokopyev was shown smiling beside the capsule and holding an watermelon which he requested on landing.
From Reuters ● Sep. 27, 2023
It’s like a supercharged matryoshka doll, with each layer peeling back to reveal and fertilize another layer — and another, and another, and another, until a viewer is dizzy with exhaustion, both delightful and chastening.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2023
I carried the matryoshka dolls into the guest bedroom, where Radar was carefully stashing Santas into a dresser.
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
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.
