noun

dowager

dowager, widow with a title

The dowager duchess attended the charity event.

The dowager duchess attended the charity event.

She was a formidable dowager in society.

She was a formidable dowager in society.

((as noun)) a widow with a title or property The dowager queen was respected by all.

Synonyms: widow, matriarch

From Old French 'douagiere', from 'douage' (dower), meaning the property a widow receives from her deceased husband.

Think of 'Downton Abbey' and the Dowager Countess, a powerful, elderly widow.

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