patriarchy

noun pa·tri·ar·chy \ ˈpā-trē-ˌär-kē \

Definition of patriarchy

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.

See patriarchy defined for English-language learners

See patriarchy defined for kids

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 of patriarchy from the Web

FYI, Mitch McConnell is lying through his turtle teeth right now pic.twitter.com/Yt73DlQpkP — Kathy Griffin (@kathygriffin) July 28, 2017 Don't think the patriarchy exists?

— lorena o'neil, The Hollywood Reporter, "Hollywood Stars Cheer Defeat of "Skinny Repeal" of Obamacare," 28 July 2017
Gender-bending, patriarchy-smashing, hilarious new take on classic tale.

— rasputin todd, Cincinnati.com, "Things to do this week: July 25-30," 24 July 2017
If an ambitious women’s studies major decided that her thesis would be a movie in which film-noir tropes of the femme fatale are married to a denunciation of the patriarchy, the result might be very close to William Oldroyd’s Lady Macbeth.

— charles taylor, MSNBC Newsweek, "Cannes' Favorite 'Lady Macbeth' Isn't Daring, but It Might Be Racist," 17 July 2017
Greater than my fear of this perceived failure was the fear of allowing my validity as a trans femme to be questioned in the name of archetypes born of a social system corrupted by centuries of toxic patriarchy.

— trésor prijs, Teen Vogue, "How My Beard Affects My Gender Identity as a Trans Femme," 13 July 2017
The one to watch: With razor-sharp takedowns of the patriarchy, unforgettable retro punk riffs and the unstoppable stage presence of frontwoman Lydia Night, the Regrettes are bound to break big, and the bandmates are only teenagers.

— piet levy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Summerfest 2017 Recap: the best and worst shows, unforgettable moments and more," 10 July 2017
Or maybe Trump is adopting a more feminist tone, cheering the decline of the patriarchy.

— aaron blake, Washington Post, "Trump tweets a video with a very unfortunate Fox News chyron," 6 July 2017
There’s such a thing as male privilege, and that is institutionalized as patriarchy.

— james hamblin, The Atlantic, "A Doctor's Plan to End Patriarchy," 25 June 2017
Helping to lead the charge is HausWitch, a home and healing boutique that also fosters a burning desire to smash the patriarchy.

— lauren valenti, Vogue, "Shop the Witchiest Beauty Treasures From a Salem Boutique," 20 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'patriarchy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

With its root -arch, meaning "ruler, leader", a patriarch is a man who dominates something, even if it's just a family. In Christianity, the term is used for a few leading figures who appear early in the Old Testament, including Methuselah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; in the Eastern Orthodox church, a patriarch is usually the equivalent of a bishop. Outside of the field of anthropology, patriarchy didn't start to be used much until the 1970s, when the women's movement gained a huge following. Many feminists have claimed that all Western societies are patriarchal—that is, that they systematically enable men to dominate women. But there's plenty of disagreement about how this is done, and the word isn't discussed as often as it used to be.

First Known Use of patriarchy

1632

Other Anthropology Terms

ectomorph, ethnography, prehistory, yurt

PATRIARCHY Defined for English Language Learners

patriarchy

noun

Definition of patriarchy for English Language Learners

: a family, group, or government controlled by a man or a group of men
: a social system in which family members are related to each other through their fathers