patrician 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of patriciannext
as in aristocratic
of high birth, rank, or station came from a patrician family

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patrician

2 of 2

noun

pə-ˈtri-shən How to pronounce patrician (audio)
as in aristocrat
a man or woman of high birth or social position the Southern patricians who once resided in these stately plantation homes

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of patrician
Adjective
As the band’s patrician, party-animal bassist, however, Roberts is quite lively, though her subplot takes a backseat to the film’s other story lines. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2025 No boutique hotel in Boston better captures the city’s alchemy of contemporary cool and patrician elegance. — Todd Plummer, Vogue, 3 Sep. 2025
Noun
Because this is the most dazzling, patrician and talked-about hotel to have opened in London this century—with great bones, spirit, heritage, and style; not to mention sybaritic restaurants, bars, and wellness spaces. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Apr. 2026 The show follows Wiig’s wannabe patrician Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, who is hell-bent on becoming the belle of 1960’s Palm Beach by elbowing her way into the upper echelons of Florida’s most exclusive beach club, the Palm Royale. — Jack Dunn, Variety, 3 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for patrician
Recent Examples of Synonyms for patrician
  1. aristocratic
  2. aristocrat
  3. noble
Adjective
  • Here’s one book written by this aristocratic Thai woman almost 80 years ago.
    — Kate Bradshaw, Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2026
  • In it, a twelve-year-old boy, Cosimo, rebels against his aristocratic family, and the Enlightenment’s false divide between nature and culture, by climbing a holm oak and spending his life in the canopy.
    — Eric Klinenberg, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of aristocratic
Noun
  • Instead, Collin makes much of Prussian military aristocrats who feel more disdain than love for Hitler, especially General Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel, the military commandant of Paris from 1942 to 1944.
    — David Denby, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • That fine old aristocrat is a half brother to the Maharajah of Nagod, and his former prime minister, boasting the impressive name and title of Lal Sahib Lal Bhargavendra Singh.
    — Leslie E. Tassell, Outdoor Life, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of aristocrat
Noun
  • In true Renaissance fashion, the two were surrounded by their yeomen, personal bodyguards to the nobles.
    — Rashad Alexander August 31, Kansas City Star, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The country’s nobles eventually surrendered in exchange for being allowed to keep their lands (some of them may have done so with their fingers crossed).
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of noble

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patriarchs
patrician
patricians
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Cite this Entry

“Patrician.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patrician. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on patrician

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about patrician

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