matriarch en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈmeɪtɹɪˌɑːk/ (UK)
- /ˈmeɪtɹiɑɹk/ (US)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
Of Latin origin, via or reinforced by Old French matriarche, from Latin māter (“mother”) + -archa, -arches, from Ancient Greek -άρχης (-árkhēs), from ἀρχός (arkhós, “chief”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ergʰ- (“to begin, rule, command”). By surface analysis, matri- + -arch.
Meanings
-
A female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group.
This female hyena also gets erections and is larger, more aggressive than the male hyenas and lives in matrilineal clans of up to 80 individuals governed by an alpha female matriarch.
2022 June 12, Katie Hunt, “How zoology got female animals all wrong”, in CNN, archived from the original on 17 Aug 2022:
- A female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group. ▸ The dominant female in a family group of elephants.
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(Northern-England) A female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group. ▸ A strong and domineering older woman; a battle axe.
Although the drummer has no musical segments in the film, he remains a central visual presence, inevitably accompanied—and visually framed—by his aunt, the stereotypically loud, forceful, and domineering northern matriarch.
2016 May 23, Barry J. Faulk, British Rock Modernism, 1967-1977: The Story of Music Hall in Rock, Routledge, →ISBN, page 67:Cornelius Hazelwood – naturally I gave him a name – saw to it that Felix could tell his prime numbers from his square roots. Then Beryl Swinehodge, an imperious Yorkshire matriarch, rolled up to test him on food pyramids.
2022 February 3, Matthew Hammett Knott, A Class of Their Own: Adventures in Tutoring the Super-Rich, Hachette UK, →ISBN:A typical Lancashire matriarch ushers the reassured townsfolk off the premises, confident that her money is safe: 'You don't deserve any business doubting t' Co-op. It's sound enough, and them that doubt it ought to be ashamed of themselves.'
2005 September 3, Alan Burton, The British Consumer Co-operative Movement and Film, 1890s-1960s, Manchester University Press, →ISBN, page 174:
- A female founder of a political or religious movement, an organization or an enterprise.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| matriarchs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Antonyms
highfather · paterfamilias · patriarch
Deriveds
matriarchic · matriarchate · matriarchism
Relateds
maternal · matriarchal · matriarchy · matron · matrimony · matrimonial
Synonyms
Translations (37)
nl matriarch (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · az ağbirçək (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · it matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · hi कुलमाता (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · et matriarh (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ro matriarhă (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ja 女家長 (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · sv matriark (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · fr matriarche (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · hu mátriárka (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · fur matriarcje (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · mi kahurangi (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · nv amá (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · de Matriarchin (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · tr anaerki (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · nb matriark (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · co matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · fi matriarkka (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · unm nikanixit xkwe (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ga matrarc (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · gd àrd-mhàthair (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ru матриа́рх (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · da matriark (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · cmn 女家長 /女家长 (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · id matriark (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · uk матріарх (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · nn matriark (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · az anaxaqan (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · pt matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · oc matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · es matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ka მატრიარქი (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ca matriarca (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · ru родонача́льница (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · eo matriarko (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · fo ættarmóðir (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group) · nl aartsmoeder (a female leader of a family, a tribe or an ethnic or religious group)