schoolmistress

noun

Definition of schoolmistressnext
as in headmistress

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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 schoolmistress Among the middle and upper classes, music was generally seen as a female accomplishment, and teaching its rudiments to children was typically left to mothers, governesses, or schoolmistresses. — JSTOR Daily, 26 Nov. 2025 Four years later came her Oscar-winning portrayal of an idiosyncratic English schoolmistress in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. — Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Sep. 2024 The inspiration for Jean Brodie was a charismatic schoolmistress called Christina Kay. — Tim Parks, The New York Review of Books, 28 July 2020 The home above was empty, except for the small cry of a little girl (who had just received a good-night kiss but didn’t want to go to sleep), and the shadow of a hoop skirt, like a black devil in a perverse schoolmistress’s ankle boots. — Silvina Ocampo, The New Yorker, 11 July 2019 Usually, one schoolmistress declares her love to another and is rebuffed. — Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for schoolmistress
  1. headmistress
  2. teacher
  3. schoolteacher
  4. schoolmarm
  5. mistress
  6. schoolmaster
  7. pedagogue
  8. headmaster
Noun
  • Yet after the apparent death of Captain Crewe in World War I, Sara’s headmistress confines the now-penniless child in the school’s attic.
    — Sohini Sarah Pillai, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The character’s name is Adelaide, seemingly the headmistress of a home for gifted young women and the person behind the camera of the talking head interviews that have teased the terror to come all season.
    — Hunter Ingram, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of headmistress
Noun
  • All four judges are former students or teachers at the College of Magic.
    — Julie Bourdin, NPR, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Our teacher had talked about it since the first day, and we were supposed to work on it all year.
    — Souvankham Thammavongsa, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of teacher
Noun
  • Trump spoke with Hubbard shortly after the former schoolteacher was freed.
    — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026
  • In Spain, elementary and secondary schoolteachers began an indefinite strike in Madrid last week to demand better pay and working conditions.
    — Teresa Medrano, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of schoolteacher
Noun
  • No ruler-wielding schoolmarm can impart the urgency of learning the way hunger can.
    — John Phillips, Outdoor Life, 14 May 2026
  • The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board took note of the hard-right’s distress, let down its tightly wound schoolmarm bun and snickered right out loud.
    — Pat Beall, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 July 2025
Definition of schoolmarm
Noun
  • Clairmont, Byron’s mistress and mother of his unborn child, had orchestrated the introduction between Byron and the group.
    — Maria Papadouris, JSTOR Daily, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Most of Jack’s mistresses did not express much concern about Jackie.
    — Laurence Leamer, Vanity Fair, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of mistress
Noun
  • The hero, or antihero, of the story is Ichabod Crane, a rather ridiculous-looking schoolmaster who has set his cap for Katrina Van Tassel, the beautiful, coquettish daughter of a wealthy Dutch farmer.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Every four years the American Society of Civil Engineers marks the nation's roads, bridges, dams and water systems the way a schoolmaster works through a stack of exam papers.
    — Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of schoolmaster
Noun
  • The series is devised and curated by poet/singer-songwriter/teacher Darius Degher who, along with poet-pedagogue Marit Anderson and local arts impresario Michael Schmitt, hosts the readings, according to a news release.
    — News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026
  • Captain İsmet, Detective Kenan, and pedagogue Aysun uncover dark truths hidden in the town’s silence, where fear and guilt protect the killer.
    — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 27 Mar. 2026
Definition of pedagogue
Noun
  • The Gheorghius’ next-door neighbor, Mats (Markus Scarth Tønseth), is also the high-school headmaster.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2026
  • William and Kate Middleton were seen walking across the schoolyard with their son before greeting the headmaster and provost.
    — Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of headmaster

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schoolmates
schoolmistress
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Cite this Entry

“Schoolmistress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/schoolmistress. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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