matriarch

noun

ma·​tri·​arch ˈmā-trē-ˌärk 

: a woman who rules or dominates a family, group, or state

specifically : a mother who is head and ruler of her family and descendants

Our grandmother was the family's matriarch.

Did you know?

A matriarchy is a social unit governed by a woman or group of women. It isn't certain that a true matriarchal society has ever existed, so matriarchy is usually treated as an imaginative concept. But there are societies in which relatedness through women rather than men is stressed, and elements of matriarchy may be stronger in certain societies than they are in most of the Western world. And most of us can point to families in which a woman has become the dominant figure, or grande dame, or matriarch.

Synonyms of matriarch

• dowager
• matron

Examples of matriarch in a Sentence

Our grandmother was the family's matriarch.

The tribe's matriarch ruled for 20 years before her death.

Recent Examples on the Web

Her presence, too, is felt in the people who now inhabit the space, like her granddaughter Charley, 25, whose easy warmth recalls qualities long ascribed to the matriarch. — Tara Anne Dalbow, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026

In a small Nepalese village nestled in the heart of a forest populated by wild elephants, Pirati is the matriarch of a Kinnar community. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 16 Sep. 2026

The streamer has picked up a drama called How to Survive Without Me, about a family dealing with the loss of its matriarch. — Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 16 Sep. 2026

Romano plays the family’s patriarch and Rita Wilson plays the deceased matriarch. — Peter White, Deadline, 16 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1606, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for matriarch

• ballpark
• benchmark
• birthmark
• daymark
• earmark
• embark
• hallmark
• landmark
• monarch
• postmark
• remark
• skylark

Kids Definition

matriarch

noun

ma·​tri·​arch ˈmā-trē-ˌärk 

: a woman who rules a family, group, or state

especially : a mother who is head of her family and descendants

matriarchal

ˌmā-trē-ˈär-kəl 

adjective