Thesaurus results for MAFIA

Mafia

noun

ˈmä-fē-ə

Definition of Mafia

as in gang

a group involved in secret or criminal activities the local Mafia largely finances itself through extortion rackets and drug trafficking

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of Mafia More than 30 people, including members and associates of four major Mafia crime families, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and ex-NBA player Damon Jones, have been ensnared in the scheme. — Tom Winter, NBC news, 10 June 2026 The Alphabet Mafia will not stand for straight attractive White girls to dominate their sport, regardless of the success that the new class has brought the league. — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026 The game, which is essentially Mafia, hit big with nearly 500 million monthly active users by its peak in the fourth quarter of 2020, no doubt fueled by the at-home isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic. — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 5 June 2026 Presley’s friends in the Memphis Mafia were convinced that Elvis wanted to tour the world and blamed Parker’s fear of deportation. — Kim Willis, USA Today, 5 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for Mafia

Recent Examples of Synonyms for Mafia

Noun

Authorities said key fugitives in the case include Dimitri Hérard, ex-head of security at Haiti's National Palace, who escaped two years ago after a powerful gang federation stormed Haiti's two biggest prisons.

— EVENS SANON, Arkansas Online, 21 Sep. 2026
His mass roundups virtually eliminated violent crime in his country, by jailing more than 90,000 people suspected of gang ties, many without due process.

— Will Freeman, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of gang

Noun

Anti-mafia prosecutor Alessandra Cerreti, who has persuaded dozens of women to testify against crime families across all Italy’s crime syndicates, admits the risks are high.

— Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 21 Sep. 2026
Details of how to run the syndicate were left to its members — insurers licensed to operate in California who would share in the plan’s profits and losses.

— Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of syndicate

Noun

Prior efforts to investigate the investigators have failed to uncover the kind of criminal misconduct the conspiracy probe aims to prove.

— ABC News, ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026
Federal court records out of North Carolina indicate an Ericka Lomick was convicted in 2011 of mortgage fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering as part of a plea deal.

— Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of conspiracy

Noun

Of these three films, The Uprising is admittedly the least heist-explicit; Paul Greengrass’s shaky cam mostly follows marching mobs lambasting the king and furious revolts against soldiers and tax collectors.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
Those gross mob-style pile-on tendencies are unhelpful and will not lead to meaningful dialog or even results.

— Sean Woods, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of mob

Noun

In a clip first shared with Entertainment Weekly, the Oscar-winning filmmaker recalls arranging an appearance on Judge Judy involving the whole Spielberg clan — a 90th birthday gift to his late mother, Leah Adler, a huge fan of Sheindlin’s.

— Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2026
The first occurred in 2008, when Bill Parcells and his clan took over the franchise after Cam Cameron’s 1-15 season.

— Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of clan

Noun

White House reporters from the two cable networks -- Betsy Klein of CNN and Akayla Gardner of MS NOW -- both went live to report they'd been turned away, their press badges deactivated, when arriving for their jobs at the White House.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 20 Sep. 2026
The case was sparked by a nearly $800 million settlement Fox paid to Dominion Voting Systems, which accused the network of spreading conspiracy theories about fraud in the 2020 election.

— Maddy Lauria, NPR, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of network

Browse Nearby Words

mafficks

Mafia

Mafias

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Style

“Mafia.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Mafia. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of Mafia

noun

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