protectress

American  

[proh-tek-tris] / proʊˈtɛk trɪs /

noun

1. a woman who guards or defends someone or something; protector.

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Gender

See -ess.

Etymology

Origin of protectress

First recorded in 1560–70; protect(o)r + -ess

Example Sentences

“What about the women?” she asked the professor, whereupon Campbell explained that the women were the hero’s mother, his protectress and the prize at the end of his quest.

From New York Times • Sep. 29, 2021

The most urgent painting here is one of the Met’s very first purchases: Anthony van Dyck’s “Saint Rosalia,” vanquisher of a 17th-century epidemic, whom I’ve adopted as my Covid protectress.

From New York Times • Dec. 4, 2020

“Saint Kateri, protectress of Canada and the first American Indian saint, we entrust you to the renewal of the faith in the first nations and in all of North America.”

From New York Times • Oct. 21, 2012

A garden was the traditional home of Venus; the peacocks may refer to Juno, the protectress of marriage, and the ivy behind the young woman could be the symbol of fidelity.

From Time Magazine Archive

Like a good huntsman, she was careful to preserve the young; she was “the protectress of dewy youth” everywhere.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton