mother figure

American  

[muhth-er fig-yer] / ˈmʌð ər ˌfɪg jər /

noun

mother figures plural

1. an emotional substitute for one's mother, especially one who fulfills parental functions such as protection, authority, support, etc.

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• mother figures
  plural

Etymology

Origin of mother figure

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

She will be remembered for playing Jill Archer, the mother figure who was known for her lemon drizzle cake, in the programme for nearly 70 years after first appearing in 1957.

From BBC • Jul. 10, 2026

Helping your mother figure out how she got into this mess is not tantamount to becoming emotionally enmeshed in her problems.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 27, 2026

Like that earlier work, “The Thanksgiving Visitor” is also drawn from Capote’s boyhood within a clan of eccentric relatives that included an older cousin and mother figure known as Sook.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

As a working mom as well as a mother figure to Beyoncé’s bandmate Kelly Rowland and niece Angie Beyincé, Knowles persevered to open a hair salon for professional Black women in Houston.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2025

“Vivian is like a mother figure to you. Grandmother, great-grandmother—whatever. She listens to you, she tells you stories, lets you help her out. She makes you feel needed.”

From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline