avuncular

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

At an appearance at the University of Mannheim in southwest Germany, Breuer, in his gray-jacketed dress uniform, sprang from his chair, transforming what had been an avuncular presence into one of studied intensity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

She finds help in the avuncular Rabbi Meyer, who steps in as her guardian and advises, “you must learn how to act according to what people say and do, not what they wish or fear.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

“Precise and circumspect, with an avuncular demeanor and an authoritative voice .... Summerall indulged his partner’s many appetites and asides, even when that meant being elbowed aside at the mike and in the limelight.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 8, 2024

Lewin is avuncular without seeming overbearing, which is key in a story about a creepy yet bizarrely clownish killer.

From Salon • Apr. 21, 2024

But the officer’s contempt is not, as in other armies, avuncular theatricality.

From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut