MSN home
Mail
My MSN
encarta
greeting cards
encarta
®
Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
materialist
materialistic
materialize
materially
materials requirement planning
materials science
matériel
maternal
maternity
maternity benefit
maternity leave
mateship
matey
matgrass
math
math.
mathematic
Also available:
World English Dictionary
Dictionnaire Français
matriarch
ma·tri·arch
[
máytree rk
]
(
plural
ma·tri·archs
)
noun
Definition:
1.
woman head of family:
a woman who is recognized as being the head of a family, community, or people
2.
strong senior woman:
a woman, usually a grandmother, who is highly respected by her family and to whom the family turns for advice and help
3.
woman in powerful position:
a woman who holds a position of dominance, authority, or respect
[
Early 17th century. < Latin
matr-
"mother," after
patriarch
]
ma·tri·ar·chal
[
màytree rk'l
]
adjective
Encarta® World English Dictionary [North American Edition] © & (P)2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Advertisement
MSN Privacy
Legal
Advertise
Feedback
Help
© 2009 Microsoft
ma·tri·ar·chal [ màytree rk'l ] adjective
