patron saint

noun

1. a saint regarded as the special guardian of a person, group, trade, country, etc.

patron saint

noun

1. a saint regarded as the particular guardian of a country, church, trade, person, etc

patron saint

1. A saint from whom a person or group claims special protection or prayers. Saint Christopher, for example, is considered the patron of travelers; Saint Luke, the patron of doctors; and Saint Patrick, the patron of Ireland. People who have the same name as a saint may consider the saint their patron. The honoring of patron saints is especially common in the Roman Catholic Church.

Word History and Origins

Origin of patron saint¹

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

The giant candlesticks’ scrolled feet support robustly modeled evangelists; Mark is most conspicuous, as befits the patron saint of Venice.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The portrait of Finley’s wife, Cameron Washington, was perched in the southwest corner, looking down on the space like a kind of patron saint of all the portraits, over a dozen total.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

I have been called the “king of weird” and the “patron saint of oddball cars.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Sometimes, it feels like he’s the unofficial patron saint of art suffering, fixated on the glory and anguish of putting yourself out there in the world.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Saint Edgar of Alberta: patron saint of disciplined capital, guardian of dividends, protector of anyone smart enough to ignore cable news.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• guardian angel