eupatrid

[yoo-pa-trid, yoo-puh-]

noun, plural eu·pat·ri·dae

[yoo-pa-tri-dee] /yuˈpæ trɪˌdi/.

one of the hereditary aristocrats of ancient Athens and other states of Greece, who at one time formed the ruling class.

Origin of eupatrid

1825–35; < Greek eupatrídēs, literally, of a good father, of noble descent, equivalent to eu- eu- + patr- (stem of patḗr) father + -idēs -id²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for eupatrid

Historical Examples of eupatrid

His father, though connected with the priestly and high-born house of the Lycomedae, was not himself a Eupatrid.
Athens: Its Rise and Fall, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
To that eupatrid, joined before with himself, was now intrusted the command of the Grecian fleet.
Athens: Its Rise and Fall, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Between the Eupatrid oligarchy and the rule of Peisistratus there comes the timocracy of Solon.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 4
Various
It is clear that the executive power in the state (see Archon) was still vested in the Eupatrid class.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 9
Various
It is not probable that the Eupatrid families were all autochthonous, even in the loose sense of that term.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 8
Various

British Dictionary definitions for eupatrid

eupatrid

noun plural -patridae (-ˈpætrɪˌdiː) or -patrids

(in ancient Greece) a hereditary noble or landowner

Word Origin for eupatrid

C19: via Latin from Greek eupatridēs, literally: having a good father, from eu- + patēr father

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012