patriarchy

noun

pa·​tri·​ar·​chy ˈpā-trē-ˌär-kē 

plural patriarchies

1

: social organization marked by the supremacy of the father in the clan or family, the legal dependence of wives and children, and the reckoning of descent and inheritance in the male line

broadly : control by men of a disproportionately large share of power

2

: a society or institution organized according to the principles or practices of patriarchy

For 20 years the country was ruled as a patriarchy.

Examples of patriarchy in a Sentence

For 20 years, the country was ruled as a patriarchy.

a region in which patriarchy is practiced

Recent Examples on the Web

The Belladonna, one of the internet’s best humor sites, routinely takes aim at the patriarchy, and this book by four of its founding editors extends the brand into sociologically and psychically frustrated erotica. —Brian Boone, Vulture, 18 June 2025

Currently, toxic masculinity and the patriarchy are on the rise in our sociopolitical environment, and our culture is promoting oppressive gender roles and racial stereotypes and seeking to control the expression of sexuality. —Colleen Bidwill, Mercury News, 16 June 2025

American patriarchy is a system that has long defined national identity by the dominance of white, cisgender, straight, able-bodied men. —Nuri Kino, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 June 2025

Our cultural obsession with thinness is a relatively recent invention, born of fashion, patriarchy, and postwar consumerism. —Anne Marie Chaker, Time, 18 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1632, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for patriarchy

• hierarchy
• matriarchy
• oligarchy
• arche
• sparky
• autarky
• menarche

Kids Definition

patriarchy

noun

pa·​tri·​ar·​chy ˈpā-trē-ˌär-kē 

plural patriarchies

1

: social organization in which the father is head of the family and ancestry and inheritance are traced in the male line

2

: a society organized according to the principles of patriarchy