maestro

noun

mae·​stro ˈmī-(ˌ)strō 

plural maestros or maestri ˈmī-ˌstrē 

: a master usually in an art

especially : an eminent composer, conductor, or teacher of music

Synonyms

• ace
• adept
• artist
• authority
• cognoscente
• connoisseur
• crackerjack
• crackajack
• dab [chiefly British]
• dab hand [chiefly British]
• expert
• fiend
• geek
• guru
• hand
• hotshot
• master
• maven
• mavin
• meister
• past master
• proficient
• scholar
• shark
• sharp
• virtuoso
• whiz
• wizard

Examples of maestro in a Sentence

a maestro of the violin

Recent Examples on the Web

Osgood Perkins is staying in business with Neon, the indie outfit that released his features Longlegs and The Monkey and helped crown him as Hollywood’s latest horror maestro. —Aaron Couch, HollywoodReporter, 14 May 2025

The English performer is nonstop traveling for her roles in television and film and has worked with cinema maestros like Steven Spielberg (Ready Player One) and now, Jake Schreier. —Malik Peay, Essence, 8 May 2025

With his contract expiring and a summer move incoming, the stage is set for the Belgian maestro to deliver one more symphony on English soil. —Julia Ranney, New York Times, 16 May 2025

De Niro also told Martin Scorsese to check out DiCaprio, who, along with De Niro, collaborated with the maestro for his entire career. —Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 14 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Italian, literally, master, from Latin magister — more at master

First Known Use

1607, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

maestro

noun

mae·​stro ˈmī-strō 

plural maestros or maestri -ˌstrē 

: a master of an art and especially of music

Etymology

from Italian maestro, literally "master," from Latin magister "master, one who holds a higher political office" — related to magistrate, master