gray eminence

noun

1. a person who wields unofficial power, especially through another person and often surreptitiously or privately.

Word History and Origins

Origin of gray eminence¹

1940–45; translation of French éminence grise

Example Sentences

At first just a gray eminence working behind the scenes while Clarence pounded the pavement, he gradually grew in prominence, reaching a fun spy-movie throwback sweet spot last episode.

From New York Times

That he’s now the current longest-running network host is as funny as any joke Kimmel has ever delivered — we all woke up one day and Kimmel became the gray eminence, the old guard, that guy who hosts the Oscars.

From Los Angeles Times

A gray eminence of the avant-garde theater world, Iván disdains the bourgeois sensibilities of Félix’s fans and the kind of work he does to entertain them.

From Washington Post

The Israeli writer Amos Oz, who died on December 28th, at the age of seventy-nine, was a cultural hero in the old sense, an acolyte who patiently made himself the gray eminence of a lost, or losing, cause: Labor Zionism, a vision that once qualified as a movement.

From The New Yorker

“Is it the long-term enmity showing itself again? He’s not a kid. He’s a gray eminence by now,” said Lester D. Friedman, emeritus professor of cinema at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and the author of “Citizen Spielberg,” which examines the filmmaker’s career.

From New York Times

More About Gray Eminence

What does gray eminence mean?

Gray eminence is a term for a person who wields power in an unofficial capacity or who influences things behind the scenes, mostly or completely out of public view.

The term is an English translation of the more commonly used éminence grise. The spelling grey eminence is also used.

The terms are usually used in the context of politics and are typically applied to someone who wields power through another person who holds an official position. The term often implies that the person is doing this secretly or in an unauthorized or otherwise shadowy way.

The terms are most often applied by the media or by those who are critical of such influence.

Example: The press is calling him a gray eminence and implying that he is the one orchestrating things behind the scenes.

Where does gray eminence come from?

The figurative use of the term éminence grise is first recorded in the 1900s. The first records of the translated version of the term, gray (or grey) eminence, come later, around the 1940s. The noun eminence refers to a position of high rank or status. It is often used as a way of addressing or referring to cardinals in the Catholic Church, as in your eminence or his eminence.

The term éminence grise was originally a nickname applied to Père Joseph, also known as François Leclerc du Tremblay. If you’ve never heard of him, that’s the point. He was the secretary and a confidential advisor of someone you probably have heard of: Cardinal Richelieu, who wielded a lot of political power in France in the 1600s. Père Joseph’s nickname was based on the fact that he was a monk who wore grayish-colored robes.

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What are some other forms related to gray eminence?

• grey eminence (alternate spelling)

What are some synonyms for gray eminence?

• éminence grise

What are some words that share a root or word element with gray eminence? 

• gray
• eminence

What are some words that often get used in discussing gray eminence?

• power
• influence
• behind the scenes
• decision-making
• advisor
• policy
• cardinal
• Svengali
• kingmaker
• figurehead

How is gray eminence used in real life?

The term éminence grise is more commonly used than gray eminence. It was applied to Dick Cheney when he served as vice president under President George W. Bush, for example.

🎨🖌⚔️🏰📖🕯 L'Eminence Grise, 1873, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Jean-Léon Gérôme.

The gray eminence is a powerful decision-maker or adviser who operates "behind the scenes", or an unofficial capacity.

This phrase originally referred to François Leclerc du Tremblay, … pic.twitter.com/jGUEi13Or8

— mary jo gibson (@maryjogibson) November 17, 2020

I'm certainly not a born leader, but I still think I could make a decent grey eminence.

— SeleniteAdam (@AdamSelenite) October 26, 2020

There you have it. Johnson is Prime Minister but the Grey Eminence is Cummings, without a doubt. He is now so bold he acts as if we had elected him. Unbelievable.

— Jon (@jayar1947) May 25, 2020

 

 

Try using gray eminence!

Is gray eminence used correctly in the following sentence?

It seems pretty obvious that there is a gray eminence making decisions in private, because the prime minister doesn’t seem capable of this type of political maneuvering.