old master
Americannoun
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an eminent artist of an earlier period, especially from the 15th to the 18th centuries.
-
a work by such an artist.
noun
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one of the great European painters of the period 1500 to 1800
-
a painting by one of these
Etymology
Origin of old master
First recorded in 1945–50
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.
His silverware collection is dwarfed by O'Neill's but Hearts do have their own wily old master in the background, with Sir Alex Ferguson offering guidance to McInnes.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
Cook has never tired of relaying the lessons he learned from Jobs, but he also taught the old master something new.
From Barron's ● Apr. 22, 2026
Now that it’s an auction house, the public can walk in free and view a regularly revolving slate of offerings, from rare books to old master paintings to dinosaur skeletons, depending on the sale calendar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 17, 2025
The old master market did not support high prices for “Mundi,” he said, adding that paintings with more solid histories had sold for much less.
From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2024
It was now more than seven years since I lived with him in the family of my old master, on Colonel Lloyd’s plantation.
From "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" by Frederick Douglass
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.
