mantle

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a loose sleeveless cloak; or a role or responsibility passed on

   She took up the mantle of leadership after her mentor retired.

From Old English mentel and Old French mantel ('cloak'), both from Latin mantellum ('cloak, covering'). The figurative sense of a 'role or responsibility passed on' is from the imagery of donning a predecessor's cloak.

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