Word.ws English Dictionary

patronus

patronus is the alternative letter-case form of Patronus.

Noun capitalized: Patronus

Patronus (plural Patronuses)

  1. A person considered one’s protector.
    • Black women are my patronus, and surrounding myself with villages of black women has been my biggest form of self-care.2017, Luvvie Ajayi, “Know Your Worth”, in Beverly Bond, editor, Black Girls Rock!: Owning Our Magic. Rocking Our Truth., 37 INK/Atria Books, →ISBN, page 64, column 2
    • The day after the last episode of Totally Biased aired in November 2013, I found out that the head of MSNBC was interested in meeting with me. Rachel Maddow, who I consider my Patronus, had set it up.2017, W. Kamau Bell, “My Awkward Joking Around with the KKK”, in The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell: Tales of a 6' 4", African American, Heterosexual, Cisgender, Left-Leaning, Asthmatic, Black and...
  2. Something associated with a person, usually an animal.
    • When I’ve got something good between my teeth, I shake it until it gives in. My Patronus is a terrier. It’s like I can see the glinting prize at the end of the race, far in the distance.2016, Lila Monroe, Head Over High Heels
    • Rocking jeans and a sinfully tight black T-shirt with a cartoon of a cute sea cow that said “My Patronus Is a Manatee,” Landon walked the few steps to the truck.2019, Lucy Lakestone, Bohemia Chills, Velvet Petal Press, →ISBN

Forms of patronus

pluralpatronuses
pluralPatronuses
alternative formpatronus

Origin of patronus

From Latin patrōnus (“protector”). A reference to J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series; the term first appears in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999). Doublet of padrone, patron, patroon, and pattern.

Questions about patronus

What does patronus mean?
Patronus means a person considered one’s protector.
What is patronus the alternative letter-case form of?
Patronus is the alternative letter-case form of Patronus.
What part of speech is patronus?
Patronus is a noun.
What is the plural of patronus?
The plural of patronus is patronuses.

Words near patronus in the dictionary

  1. patronnes
  2. patronomatology
  3. patrons
  4. patronship
  5. patronships
  6. patronus
  7. patronuses
  8. patronym
  9. patronymic
  10. patronymical
  11. patronymically

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: patronus (page history and authors); Patronus (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “patronus.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/patronus. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.