as in gangs
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Mafias
Noun
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Conspirators also spent months obtaining weapons and body armor and attempting to build relationships with Haitian gangs, officials said.—
David Fischer,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Mar. 2026 -
At age 14, Arias was caught in the crossfire of a shootout between rival gangs, paralyzing him from the waist down.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Recent Mexican history is riddled with the tales of once-powerful syndicates — gangs in Guadalajara, Tijuana and Ciudad Juárez, among them — that ruptured, were gobbled up by other mobs or petered out as the big guys were captured or killed.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Feb. 2026
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Adams put together a portfolio of his workday doodles and sent it to several newspaper syndicates.—
Chris Koseluk,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Jan. 2026
Noun
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This is not manufactured, like the DeSantis administration’s obsession with bogus fluoride studies or vaccine conspiracies.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
12 Mar. 2026
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Online, every day, we are inundated with evidence of emergencies, crimes, and conspiracies that seem to elude comprehension.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
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For almost as long, these two clans have also been intimate friends (and relations) of the Pelosi family.—
James Reginato,
Vanity Fair,
5 Mar. 2026
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Salvation takes place in a mountainous region of Turkey where two Kurdish clans have grown up in constant distrust of each other.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Large defense installations, energy grids, transportation networks, and industrial complexes often span vast geographic areas, making constant surveillance difficult.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Mar. 2026
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The awards, founded in 1985 by Central City Productions CEO Don Jackson, celebrate excellence in gospel music and air nationwide on television networks including BET, Bounce TV and the Stellar Network.—
Evan Moore,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Mafias.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Mafias. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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