mother of

1. The best or greatest of a type, as in That was the mother of all tennis matches. This expression originated during the Gulf War as a translation of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's term umm al-ma'arik, for “major battle”; the Arabic “mother of” is a figure of speech for “major” or “best.” It was quickly adopted and applied to just about any person, event, or activity. [Slang; late 1980s]

Example Sentences

The inquiry also heard from the mother of child M, whose daughter survived without physical injuries but saw her friend killed.

From BBC

The inquiry also heard from the mother of child U, who survived without physical injuries but was also deeply traumatised.

From BBC

An American who died in Lisbon's deadly funicular crash has been identified as Heather Hall, a mother of two and college teacher who was visiting Portugal from the US state of South Carolina.

From BBC

Among the many family members with angry messages for Netanyahu was the mother of Matan Angrest, an IDF soldier being held in Gaza.

From BBC

He lost a phone charger and accused Julia’s mother of stealing it.

From Los Angeles Times