patron saint

noun

Synonyms of patron saint next

: a saint to whose protection and intercession a person, a society, a church, or a place is dedicated

: an original leader or prime exemplar

Example Sentences

St. David is the patron saint of Wales. St. Christopher is the patron saint of travelers. The success of her books has made her the patron saint of a new literary movement.

Recent Examples on the Web These original parishioners, who had arrived by boat, named their church after the patron saint of seafarers — a saint who fed the hungry and clothed the needy and inspired the character of Santa Claus. —

Jane Margolies, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2022 These original parishioners, who had arrived by boat, named their church after the patron saint of seafarers: a saint who fed the hungry, clothed the needy and inspired the character of Santa Claus. —

Jane Margolies, BostonGlobe.com, 24 Dec. 2022 Read full article The annual parade in New York City — which bills itself as the world's largest and oldest — drew throngs to Fifth Avenue to await bagpipes and bands, and give homage to Ireland's patron saint. —

Russ Bynum And Bobby Caina Calvan, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Mar. 2023 But who was the holiday's patron saint? —

Jill Gleeson, Country Living, 11 Jan. 2023 The annual parade in New York City — which bills itself as the world’s largest and oldest — drew throngs to Fifth Avenue to await bagpipes and bands, and give homage to Ireland’s patron saint. —

Russ Bynum, Fortune, 17 Mar. 2023 For Giorgia Meloni, the first prime minister since World War II to lead a party rooted in Italy’s fascist past, Dante has become a patron saint. —

Anna Momigliano, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2023 What originated as a commemoration of Christianity in Ireland and St. Patrick, the island’s patron saint, has evolved into a broader celebration of Irish culture that often involves parades, dancing, drinking and a whole lot of green. —

Patrick Connolly, orlandosentinel.com, 15 Mar. 2022 The Velvet Underground and Nico (also known as the ‘Banana Album’ due to the famous cover art by Andy Warhol, the band’s patron saint) provided the template for modern/alternative rock music over the decades, especially punk, post-punk, Goth, synthpop and noise rock. —

David Chiu, Forbes, 28 Sep. 2021 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'patron saint.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.