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

See Examples For:

mother figure

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

She was such a mother figure to me, and I adore her truly.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 1, 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

“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